Mississippi map turtle

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Mississippi map turtle
Schildkroten.jpg
Top: Mississippi Map Turtle; Bottom: False Map Turtle
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Testudines
Suborder: Cryptodira
Superfamily: Testudinoidea
Family: Emydidae
Genus: Graptemys
Species:
Subspecies:
G. p. kohni
Trinomial name
Graptemys pseudogeographica kohni
(Baur, 1890)
Synonyms
  • Malacoclemmys kohnii
    Baur, 1890
  • Graptemys kohnii
    — Baur, 1893
  • Malaclemys lesueurii kohnii
    Siebenrock, 1909
  • Graptemys pseudogeographica kohnii
    Stejneger & Barbour, 1917
  • Graptemys pseudogeographica kohni
    Mertens, 1934
  • Graptemys kohni
    Cagle, 1953
  • Malaclemys kohni
    McDowell, 1964
  • Graptemys khonii
    Ferri, 2002 ( ex errore ) [1]
  • Graptemys pseudogeographica kohni
    Rhodin et al., 2010 [2]

The Mississippi map turtle (Graptemys pseudogeographica kohni) is a subspecies of land and water turtle belonging to the family Emydidae. G. p. kohni is endemic to the central United States.

Contents

Etymology

The Mississippi map turtle derives its common name not from the state of Mississippi, but rather from the Mississippi River.

The specific name, kohni, is in honor of amateur naturalist Joseph Gustave Kohn (1837–1906) of New Orleans, Louisiana, who collected the type specimen. [3] [4]

Geographic range

Graptemys pseudogeographica kohni is found along the Mississippi River and its tributaries, from Illinois and Missouri southward.

Description

Their grey shells are covered in yellow lines resembling contour lines.

Captivity

A Mississippi map turtle swimming inside a tank.

The Mississippi map turtle is a popular pet for aquarists and is very enjoyable to watch.[ citation needed ]

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References

  1. Fritz, Uwe; Havaš, Peter (2007). "Checklist of Chelonians of the World" (PDF). Vertebrate Zoology. 57 (2): 189. Archived from the original (PDF) on 1 May 2011. Retrieved 29 May 2012.
  2. "Graptemys pseudogeographica ". The Reptile Database. www.reptile-database.org.
  3. Baur G (1890). "Two New Species of Tortoises from the South". Science16 (405): 262-263. (Malacoclemmys kohnii, new species, p. 263).
  4. Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN   978-1-4214-0135-5. (Graptemys kohni, p. 145).

Further reading