This post concerns Actinemys pallida, the so-called “southwestern pond turtle” but does not include its northern relative, A. marmorata, which is confined to British Columbia, Washington, Oregon, and northern California.
Actinemys pallida is restricted to southern California and Baja, Mexico. It is a species that is vulnerable (i.e., threatened by human activities). This turtle species lives in both permanent and intermittent lakes and marshes, where it feeds on aquatic insects, crayfish, tadpoles, small fish, and small frogs.
The classification of A. pallida is:
Kingdom Animalia
Phylum Chordata
Class Reptile
Order Testudines
Family Emydidae
Genus Actinmys
Species A. pallida
Actinemys pallida shown here are about an estimated seven to eight inches long (with its head extended), and having a dark-colored upper shell (carapace). This turtle is referred to as a “basking turtle,” because on sunny days, it leaves the freshwater source, crawls a short distance on the bank, and then basks in the sunlight.
The geologic record of the earliest known fresh-water turtles is very poorly known, with generalizations and speculations readily available online. The the most often-mentioned geologic time for the earliest fresh-water turtles is either the late Permian, Triassic, or the late Cretaceous. Amid all this confusion, it is pertinent to mention the recent discovery of fossil remains of soft-shelled turtles and pond turtles (as well as abundant alligator fossils, tapirs, brontotheres, etc.) in lower Eocene rocks on Elsmere Island, in Canada’s high-arctic area (see Eberle and Greenwood, 2012). These turtle fossils might well be one of the earliest confirmable geologic recordsof pond turtles.
Figure 1. Actinmys pallida, oblique left-side view showing white band on cheek and yellow pastron (ventral side of carapace). Estimated length of entire animal: 7 inches.
Figure 2. A. pallida, oblique right-side view showing yellow ventral side of carapace. Estimated length of entire animal: 8 inches.
Figure 3. A. pallida, frontal view showing yellow ventral side of carapace, as well as yellow stripes on neck. Estimated width 4.5 inches.
REFERENCES CONSULTED
Ebele, J.J. and D.R. Greenwood. 2012. Life at the top of the greenhouse Eocene world-a review of the Eocene flora and vertebrate fauna from Canada’s High Arctic. Geological Society of America Bulletin, Jan/Feb 2012:124, no. 1/2, pp. 3-23. [This is not a free pdf].
Reid, K. and three others. 1967. Golden Nature Book “Pond Life”: A guide to common plants and animals of North American ponds and lakes. Western Publishing Co., New York, 160 pp.