Found this wee turtle in my yard. We already have eastern box turtles but this gal looks different View attachment 350868
I think it is a paintYou think so even if I'm in PA? Looks like their territory is from Virginia to the to Oklahoma. And we really didn't find it anywhere near water
Of course they don't all have the same pattern but pretty darn close to all the painted bellies I have looked up.@cdmay A red-bellied has definitive stripe marks going down the sides of the carapace like the sliders. The concinna complex has the more swirled carapace marking. Both can have similar plastron markings however the red-bellied normally has much reduced marking as opposed to the cooter.
@wellington definitely not a painted turtle plastron at all!
@Mikeblan Yes, the traditional range of the Eastern River Cooter does extend up into Pennsylvania. Also - these days we see all sorts of Pseudemys released and breeding all over!