Turtles of Georgia and South Carolina
- Photos by J.D. Willson unless otherwise noted
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| The Florida cooter is very similar in appearance to the river cooter, but lacks the C-shaped mark on the carapace and the plastron markings characteristic of the river cooter. Also, its head stripes do not merge to form "hairpins" as in the river cooter. The Florida cooter inhabits soft-bottomed, permanent bodies of water, including slow moving rivers in the Coastal Plain of South Carolina and Georgia. This common species is frequently observed basking on logs in the water. Some scientistis believe that Florida and River Cooters belong to the same species. |
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| female Florida cooter |
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Shell pattern of Florida cooter
note no "C"-shaped marking |
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Range of the Florida Cooter in our region
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Range of the Florida Cooter in the eastern U.S.A.
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