2025 MURAL SPECIES!
spotted turtle
Clemmys guttata
STATUS:
US STATUS: LT - Listed Threatened
MI STATUS: T - Threatened (Legally Protected)
Description:
The Spotted Turtle is a small turtle with adult carapace (i.e., top shell) lengths ranging from 3.5 to 5.4 inches. This turtle can be easily identified by the small, round yellow spots on its broad, smooth, black or brownish black carapace, although spots may fade in older individuals and some individuals are spotless. The plastron (i.e., bottom shell) is hingeless and is usually yellow or orange with a black blotch along the outer margin of each scute or scale. Hatchlings average about 1.14 inches in carapace length and usually have a single spot on each plate of their carapace. Their plastrons are yellowish orange with a central dark blotch.
Habitat and Occurrence
If you’re looking to find a Spotted Turtle for yourself, check within the following ecosystems within the green counties on the map!
All information on this page is generously provided by the Michigan Natural Features Inventory (MNFI). For more information about Spotted Turtles - visit the species description here: mnfi.anr.msu.edu/spotted-turtle. To learn more about Michigan’s biodiversity, ecological communities and natural heritage, visit mnfi.anr.msu.edu
get involved with spotted turtle conservation!
While there are currently no Community Science projects specifically operating to benefit the preservation of Spotted Turtles in Michigan, there are many organizations who work to protect the habitats where it resides! Volunteer with some of these organizations and help protect the habitat that Spotted Turtles needs in order to survive.
report an observation
MNFI stewards the Michigan Natural Heritage Database and track observations of some of Michigan’s rarest forms of life to fully understand the population and range of rare species to protect biodiversity in Michigan. If you have encountered a Spotted Turtle, you can share the location information with these trusted conservation professionals here: mnfi.anr.msu.edu/species/report