Eastern painted turtle

Description:

The painted turtle has a long, oval smooth shell, with large scutes in straight rows across its back. The shell varies in color from olive to black. They also have yellow and red stripes on their necks, legs, and tails. The face has only yellow stripes, with a large yellow spot and streak behind each eye .Males can be differentiated from females by their longer foreclaws, longer tails, and more depressed shells; males are also usually smaller than females.

Habitat:

Mason Farm Biological Reserve

Notes:

This poor turtle was very bothered by flies and continually rubbing its head. I was impressed by its long retractable claws.