Chicken turtle
Long-neck -eared
The long-necked Eared ( Deirochelys reticularia ) is a mono generic nature of the New World family terrapins ( Emydidae ). It occurs in three subspecies in North America.
Appearance
Female long neck painted turtles reach carapace length up to 25 cm. The carapace is usually only 15 to 18 centimeters. Males are slightly smaller than the females usually. The most olive colored carapace is finely wrinkled and shows a yellow green net pattern that also serves to distinguish the three subspecies of each other. With increasing age, however, these tanks color disappears and increasingly older animals exhibit an increasingly dark olive to almost black carapace on. The edge shield of the carapace and plastron are yellow.
As the name " long-necked Eared " suggests, they have an exceptionally long neck. It reaches 80 percent of carapace length. The orange- yellow stripes with which the neck is drawn. On the hull there are vertical light stripes. At the front leg is a broad strip available.
Distribution and habitat
The species has three subspecies, each of which has a not overlapping distribution area.
- The Eastern long-necked turtle jewelry ( Deirochelys reticularia reticularia ) comes along the Atlantic and the Gulf Coast of Virginia prior to the Mississippi River.
- Florida Long Neck eared ( Deirochelys reticularia Chrysea ) comes from Florida.
- Western Long- eared neck ( Deirochelys reticularia miaria ) occurs from western Mississippi over Southeast Missouri and Southeast Oklahoma south on to the Gulf of Mexico.
The long-necked Eared inhabits shallow ponds, lakes, ponds and cypress swamps. It is only very rarely found in streams and rivers. However, it holds also often out of the water and can be removed quite far from the nearest waters here.
Way of life
Long-necked turtles jewelry take the usual animal food, as it is characteristic of other New World pond turtles. In addition, however, they also eat considerable amounts of plant food. The breeding season is from the respective distribution area dependent. Populations in South Carolina usually mate in March. In Florida, breeding throughout the year to watch. The nest consists of five to 15 eggs. The time until the slip is a function of temperature, it is at a temperature of 25 to 30 degrees from about 60 to 70 days.