THE CENTER FOR NORTH AMERICAN HERPETOLOGY


Reptilia    Testudines    Emydidae  

Spotted Turtle
Clemmys guttata (Schneider, 1792)

Current SSAR Comments:
Davy and Murphy (2014, Canadian Journal of Zoology 92: 149–162) identified significant genetic structure within Canadian populations of C. guttata. They made no taxonomic recommendations.

Range maps are based on curated specimens and provided gratis by CNAH.
(Created by Travis W. Taggart; Version: 2023.04.08.12.31.18)
Download GeoJSON polygon range file: - 1.06 MB

First instance(s) of published English names:
Spotted Tortoise (Testudo guttata: Shaw, George. 1802. General zoology or systematic natural history. Volume 3. G. Kearsley, London, U. K.. 615pp.); Spotted Turtle (Emys punctata: Harlan, Richard. 1827. Genera of North American Reptilia, and a synopsis of the species Journal of the Academy of Natural Sciences Philidelphia 5(2):317-372); Spotted Terrapin (Emys guttata: Gray, John E. 1830. A synopsis of the species of the class reptilia. Pages 1-110 in The Animal Kingdom Arranged in Conformity with its Organization by the Baron Cuvier, member of teh Institute of France, with Additional Descriptions of all the Species Hitherto Named, and of many not before noticed. Ninth Volume. Whittaker, Treacher, and Company, London, England. pp.); Spotted Tortoise (Emys guttata: De Kay, James E. 1842. Zoology of New-York, or, The New-York Fauna: Comprising Detailed Descriptions of All the Animals Hitherto Observed within the State of New-York, with Brief Notices of those Occasionally Found Near its Borders, and Accompanied by Appropriate Illustrations. Volume 1, Part 3 (Reptiles and Amphibians). W. & A. White & J. Visscher, Albany, New York. pp.); Speckled Geoclemys (Geoclemys guttata: Gray, John E. 1856. Catalogue of shield reptiles in the collection of the British Museum. Part I. Testudinata (Tortoises). Taylor and Francis, London, England. 79pp.); Spotted Turtle (Naemys guttata: Allen, J. A. 1869. Catalogue of the reptiles and batrachians found in the vicinity of Springfield, Mass., with notices of all the other species known to inhabit the state. Proceedings of the Boston Society of Natural Hisotry 12(1868-1869):171-204); Yellow-Spotted Turtle (Chelopus guttatus: Yarrow, Henry C. 1876. List of Skeletons and Crania in the Section of Comparative Anatomy of the United States Army Medical Museum for use during the International Exhibition of 1876 in Connection with the Representation of the Medical Department U.S. Army. Army Medical Museum, Washington, D. C. pp.); Speckled Tortoise (Nanemys guttatus: Jordan, David Starr. 1876. Manual of the Vertebrates of the Northern United States: Including the District East of the Mississippi River, and North of North Carolina and Tennessee, Exclusive of Marine Species. Jansen, McClurg, and Company, Chicago, Illinois.. 342pp.); Spotted Turtle (Chelopus guttatus: Yarrow, Henry C. 1882. Check list of North American Reptilia and Batrachia with catalogue of specimens in U. S. National Museum. Bulletin of the United States National Museum (24):1-249); Speckled Tortoise (Chelopus guttatus: Davis, N. S. Jr. and Frank L. Rice. 1883. Descriptive catalogue of North American batrachia and reptilia, found east of Mississippi River. Illinois Natural History Survey Bulletin 1(5):71); Speckled Tortoise (Clemmys guttata: Hay, Oliver P. 1892. Batrachians and Reptiles of the State of Indiana. Pages 409-624 in 17th Annual Report of the Indiana Department of Geology and Natural Resources, William B. Burford, Printer and Binder, Indianapolis, Indiana. pp.); Spotted Turtle (Clemmys guttata: Drowne, Frederick P. 1905. The reptiles and batrachians of Rhode Island. Monograph of the Roger Williams Park Museum 15():1-24); Speckled Back (Clemmys guttata: Fowler, Henry W. 1907. The amphibians and reptiles of New Jersey. MacCrellish and Quigley, Trenton, N. J.. 29-250pp.); Spotted Terrapin (Clemmys guttata: Fowler, Henry W. 1907. The amphibians and reptiles of New Jersey. MacCrellish and Quigley, Trenton, N. J.. 29-250pp.); Speckled Terrapin (Clemmys guttata: Fowler, Henry W. 1907. The amphibians and reptiles of New Jersey. MacCrellish and Quigley, Trenton, N. J.. 29-250pp.); Spotted Tortoise (Clemmys guttata: Fowler, Henry W. 1907. The amphibians and reptiles of New Jersey. MacCrellish and Quigley, Trenton, N. J.. 29-250pp.); Yellow Spotted Terrapin (Clemmys guttata: Fowler, Henry W. 1907. The amphibians and reptiles of New Jersey. MacCrellish and Quigley, Trenton, N. J.. 29-250pp.); Pond Turtle (Clemmys guttata: Fowler, Henry W. 1907. The amphibians and reptiles of New Jersey. MacCrellish and Quigley, Trenton, N. J.. 29-250pp.); Speckled Terrapin (Chelopus guttatus: Brimley, Clement S. 1915. List of reptiles and amphibians of North Carolina. Journal of the Elisha Mitchell Scientific Society 30(4):195-206); Spotted Turtle (Clemmys guttata: Schmidt, Karl P. 1953. A Check List of North American Amphibians and Reptiles. 6th Edition. University of Chicago Press, Chicago, Illinois. 280pp.);

Taxon Links:

  
Catalog of American Amphibians and Reptiles
  
The Reptile Database
  
NatureServe
  
iNaturalist
  
GenBank
  
USGS - Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Database

Pertinent LIterature:
1792 Schneider, Johann G. T. Beschreibung und Abbildung einer neuen Art von Wasserschildkröte nebst Bestimmungen einiger bisher wenig bekannten fremden Arten. [Description and illustration of a new species of water turtle along with identifications of some previously little-known foreign species.] Schriften der Gesellschaft Naturforschender Freunde zu Berlin [Writings of the Society of Natural Research Friends in Berlin] 10(4):259-283
2014 Davy, Christina M. and Robert W. Murphy. Conservation genetics of the endangered Spotted Turtle (Clemmys guttata) illustrate the risks of "bottleneck tests". Canadian Journal of Zoology 92():149-162

THE CENTER FOR NORTH AMERICAN HERPETOLOGY — Accessed: Thursday 30 January 2025 02:05 CT