THE CENTER FOR NORTH AMERICAN HERPETOLOGY


Reptilia    Testudines    Kinosternidae  

Rough-footed Mud Turtle
Kinosternon hirtipes (Wagler, 1830)
KY-no-ster-non — HUR-tuh-peez

SSAR 9th Edition Comments:
There are no current SSAR comments for this taxon.

Range maps are based on curated specimens and provided gratis by CNAH.
(Created by Travis W. Taggart; Version: 2023.04.09.21.41.47)
Download GeoJSON polygon range file: - 0.25 MB

Province/State Distribution:
United States: Texas

Taxonomic Etymology:
Named for ts rough or bristly feet.
Kinosternon — Greek origin meaning “moving chest.”
hirtipes — Latin hirtus = “hairy” + pes = “foot” — “bristly-footed,” referring to tubercles or rough skin on limbs.

First instance(s) of published English names:
Mexican Mud Turtle (Kinosternon hirtipes: Schmidt, Karl P. 1953. A Check List of North American Amphibians and Reptiles. 6th Edition. University of Chicago Press, Chicago, Illinois. 280pp.); Big Bend Mud Turtle (Kinosternon hirtipes murrayi: 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

Selected References:
1830 Wagler, Johann G. Natürliches System der Amphibien, mit vorangehender Classification der Säugetier und Vogel. Ein Beitrag zur vergleichenden Zoologie. [Natural system of amphibians, preceded by the classification of mammals and birds. A contribution to comparative zoology.] Johann Georg Cotta, München [Munich], Germany. 354pp.
1985 Iverson, John B. Kinosternon hirtipes. Catalogue of American Amphibians and Reptiles (361):1-4
1997 Starkey, David E. Molecular systematics and biogeography of the New World turtle genera Trachemys and Kinosternon. Dissertation. Texas A&M, College Station, Texas.. 149pp.

THE CENTER FOR NORTH AMERICAN HERPETOLOGY — Accessed: Friday 05 December 2025 16:55 CT