Turtle time

The region’s most common turtle, and possibly the most beautiful, is the painted turtle. This reptile’s body is a palette of yellow, red, green, black and tan “painted” across its shell, head and limbs. Seen most often basking on logs or rocks in quiet waterways such as lakes, ponds and wetlands, this turtle has an upper shell, or carapace, that is dark olive or black in color, with a lower shell, or plastron, that is typically yellow and may bear a dark splotch in the center.

Females are able to reproduce at four to eight years of age and lay their eggs in nests shaped like flasks approximately four inches deep. The nest may contain between three to 14 eggs, which incubate for approximately 10 to 11 weeks before emerging as hatchlings an inch or less in size.

Painted turtles eat fish, insects, amphibians, crayfish and mollusks when young, then increasingly turn to a variety of aquatic plants.

Turtles are “poikilothermic,” meaning that their body temperature is largely governed by the temperature of their surroundings. Basking in the sun is important, as it elevates body temperature, causing an increased metabolic rate and improved digestion.

The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission publishes an excellent resource on turtles and Pennsylvania’s other reptiles and amphibians by Larry L. Shaffer. The full-color book details information on the characteristics, identification, range, habitat, reproduction and food of Pennsylvania’s salamanders, frogs, toads, turtles, lizards and snakes. Visit fish.state.pa.us or contact the Educational Media Section, PA Fish and Boat Commission, P.O. Box 67000, Harrisburg, PA 17106-7000 for more information.