Turtles in Kansas – 14 Species That are Found Here

Kansas is home to 14 species of turtles. These include snapping turtles, mud turtles, pond sliders, box turtles, musk turtles, painted turtles, and softshell turtles.

The varying climate in the state of Kansas—from semi-arid climate to the south, humid continental climate to the east, and humid subtropical climate to the south—creates the perfect living conditions for these various species of turtles.

Below, we’ll discuss the full list of turtle species in Kansas. For each species, we’ll cover basic information such as physical appearance, average adult size, diet, where they live, lifespan, and conservation status.

14 Types Of Turtles in Kansas

1. Alligator Snapping

• Scientific name: Macroclemys temminckii
• Common name: Alligator snapping turtle, Snapping turtle
• Family: Chelydridae
• Size: 15 to 26 inches
• Lifespan: 80 to 120 years
• Conservation status: Vulnerable

The alligator snapping turtle is the largest freshwater turtle in Kansas. This species is large than the common snapping turtle. An adult alligator snapping turtle weighs 15 to 20 inches long.

An alligator turtle is characterized by a long, tough shell with trigonal ridges that resemble the back of an alligator (hence the name alligator turtle). Shell coloring can be black, olive, or brown. Though some people believe that the green tips on the shell ridges are natural, they’re simply algae.

These alligator turtles also prefer living in deeper waters of rivers, canals, lakes, and swamps in Kansas.

As omnivorous species, they hunt their prey (but not actively). They have a unique way of hunting where they lie at the bottom of the water body and open their mouth to show their pink work-like appendage to lure their prey.

And when the prey gets close enough, the turtle ambushes it!

Another interesting fact about this turtle is its powerful jaws which can bite with a force of up to 1000lbs!

This makes them extremely dangerous turtles and should NEVER be handled in the wild! Mind you, they have injured even the most experienced herpetologists with their bites.

2. Common Snapping Turtle

• Scientific name: Chelydra serpentina
• Common name: Snapping Turtle
• Family: Chelydridae
• Size: 8 to 18 1/2 inches
• Lifespan: 30 to 50 years or more
• Conservation status: Least Concern

Common snapping turtles are widespread throughout Kansas. An average adult is pretty large and has a shell length of 18½ inches long.

This species has a chunky head, a long tail, and large webbed feet. The shell color is black or olive and has no distinct pattern.

These Kansas snapping turtles are known for their powerful jaws—they’re so strong that these turtles eat other turtles!

You’ll find them in waterbodies with muddy bottoms. Examples include marshes, ponds, lakes, rivers, and even shallow streams. They generally prefer waters with aquatic vegetation in plenty and foods such as fish, frogs, birds, etc.

These Kansas turtles generally show docile behavior but can get quite aggressive if taken out of water. The best way to calm it is to take it back to the waters, where it feels safe.

3. Common Map Turtle

• Scientific name: Graptemys geographica
• Common name: Common Map Turtle, Northern Map Turtle
• Family: Emydidae
• Size: 3 to 10 inches
• Lifespan: 30 to 50 years
• Conservation status: Least Concern

The common map turtle has also been observed in Kansas. To be more specie, this freshwater turtle resides in the rivers and lakes of Kansas.

They prefer living in large waterbodies with debris. These offer the perfect spots for basking while the water bodies enable them to spend their hibernation periods in winter completely submerged.

Like other map turtles, this common map turtle gets its name from the map-like pattern on its shell. Its shell is typically darker and ranges from brown to black. The map pattern has a lighter coloration.

The common map turtle of Kansas is mainly carnivorous and feeds on mollusks such as clams and snails. It will also eat crayfish and insects. And when animal matter gets scarce, it will feed on plant matter.

Note that it may be difficult to spot a common map turtle in the wild in Kansas. Although active during the day, these turtles are quite timid and will quickly retreat to the waters at the slightest disturbance.

4. False Map Turtle

• Scientific name: Graptemys pseudogeographica
• Common name: False Map Turtle, Sawback Turtle
• Family: Emydidae
• Size: 6 to 10 inches (females), 3.5 to 6 inches (males)
• Lifespan: 30 to 50 years
• Conservation status: Least Concern

The False map turtle is another turtle species found in Kansas. This turtle’s preferred habitat in Kansas includes rivers, streams, and oxbow lakes of the Missouri and Mississippi river systems.

It is an excellent swimmer and prefers moderate currents and deep waters.

Its upper shell coloring ranges from olive to dark brown, with light-colored lines on its limbs. It also features a line behind its eye that forms a backward “L” shape. The map pattern on its carapace tends to fade as the turtle ages.

Since this map turtle of Kansas is omnivorous, it feeds on aquatic insects and animals as well as vegetation. It is fond of river snails and crustaceans. Don’t forget it has strong jaws and can give a nasty bite!

Like most of the other aquatic turtles of Kansas, this map turtle spends most of its waking hours sunning.

The false map turtle is quite shy and quietly and swiftly slides into the water at the slightest signs of disturbance. It likes spending most of its time in water and is most active in climate conditions of over 85 degrees Fahrenheit.

5. Ouachita Map Turtle

• Scientific name: Graptemys ouachitensis
• Common name: Ouachita Map Turtle, Map Turtle
• Family: Emydidae
• Size: 3 to 5 inches (males), 8 to 10 inches (females)
• Lifespan: 30 to 50 years
• Conservation status: Least Concern

The Ouachita map turtle lives in the northern part of Kansas and is regarded as one of the less popular map turtle species. The turtle makes an excellent choice of pet for many people since it’s easy to care for.

As for its name, this species is named after the river where it was discovered—Ouachita!

Ouachita turtle is medium to large in terms of size. The average adult female is 3-5 inches long while the male is 8 to 10 inches long. It features thin, yellowing lines that form a web on the turtle’s shell (similar to a contour elevation map).

Moreover, the turtle has brown to olive coloring, with a light spot under both eyes.

The easiest way to identify this Kansas turtle from other map turtle subspecies is by checking the dots on its face. They usually have 3 prominent spots—under the jawline, under the eye, and behind the eye.

Note that this turtle prefers living in stagnant or slow-moving waters, including ponds, lakes, and streams. of Kansas It also prefers waters with plenty of vegetation.

This species is omnivorous and eats meat, insects, vegetables, fruits, and aquatic vegetation, to name but a few.

6. Common Musk Turtle

• Scientific name: Sternotherus odoratus
• Common name: Eastern Musk Turtle, Common Musk Turtle, Musk Turtle, Stinkpot
• Family: Kinosternidae
• Size: 2 to 4.5 inches
• Lifespan: 30 to 50 years
• Conservation status: Least Concern

The Eastern Musk Turtle is another aquatic turtle found in Indiana’s slow-moving and sluggish streams as well as still water bodies. The turtle usually prefers areas with dark crevices, where it can easily hide. It also prefers lots of plant matter to burrow in and hide.

An average adult eastern musk turtle is quite small (2 to 4.5 inches long). It has a pretty plain appearance with highly consistent colors. Both the shell and skin usually share the same color and can range from dark brown to black.

The turtle shell has one unique feature—a ridge traversing its entire shell length. Besides, it has another distinctive feature: two light-colored stripes on its head.

Common musk turtles of Kansas are herbivorous and will eat small aquatic or semi-aquatic animals, carrion, and aquatic vegetation. They will also feed on any other vegetation on land.

When it feels threatened, this turtle species emits a foul odor (a musky odor, hence its name). This scent can be detected in water or on land. It can also easily waft through the air to its predators.

Also, these Kansas turtles are good at climbing trees! This great capability enables them to go high up tree branches to find a safe resting place and avoid predators.

7. Yellow Mud Turtle

• Scientific name: Kinosternon arizonense
• Common name: Yellow Mud Turtle, Mud Turtle
• Family: Kinosternidae
• Size: 4-5 inches
• Lifespan: 40 years
• Conservation status: Least concern

The Yellow mud turtle is a species native to Kansas and prefers living in any waterbody in Kansas state.

Possible places you can find it includes muddy pools, cattle tanks, irrigation ditches, sewer drains, and even cisterns!

This turtle will spend more time on land migrating to new water sources and is never picky about where it can stay.

It has its upper shell part flattened with colors varying from brown to black or olive. It also features dark brown edges around its scutes. The skin color is usually olive. Males have a sharp or horny end as a distinctive feature.

This Kansas yellow mud turtle is omnivorous like any other mud turtle. its diet is made up of a variety of foods including tadpoles, leeches, crayfish, fairy shrimp, and fish.

It will also eat frogs, slugs, and snails. And as an opportunistic feeder, it will also eat decaying animal and plant matter.

Also read: Turtles in Vermont

8. Smooth Softshell Turtle

• Scientific name: Apalone mutica
• Common name: Midland Smooth Shell
• Family: Trionychidae
• Size: 6 to 13 inches
• Lifespan: 40 to 60 years
• Conservation status: Least Concern

The smooth softshell turtle boasts its position as the fastest turtle on land in Illinois! Though most people believe these turtles are slow-moving, they must be quick to enable them to outrun their predators given that their soft shells don’t offer much protection.

Shell color of this turtle species ranges from olive to dark brown. The upper part of its shell features dark markings (with female markings appearing in a blotchier pattern than the males’)

The shell of these turtles also appears rounder and flatter, just like other softshell species.

Note that Gulf Coast smooth turtle (Apalone calvata) is the closes relative of this Midland smooth softshell turtle. The main difference existing between these two species is size, with the Gulf coast turtle reaching a maximum of 12 inches long.

Also, the Gulf coast species has no lines on its face while the midland smooth softshell turtle does.

These turtles like inhabiting waterbodies like rivers and streams in Illinois that provide an abundance of mud or sand at the bottom. They can also be found in stagnant waterbodies.

Smooth softshell turtles of Illinois are omnivorous and their diet revolves around aquatic vegetation and insects. However, they have been observed to like meat more than plant matter and will mainly eat snails, insects, and fish.

9. Spiny Softshell Turtle

• Scientific name: Apalone spinifera
• Common name: Spiny Softshell Turtle
• Family: Trionychidae
• Size: 5 to 9 inches (males), 12 to 20 inches (females)
• Lifespan: 30 to 70 years
• Conservation status: Least Concern

The Spiny softshell turtle is a medium-to-large freshwater species that lives in Kansas’s lakes, streams, and rivers with muddy or sandy bottoms and little or no vegetation.

Female spiny softshell turtles are usually larger than males. And unlike other turtles, this species has a flexible, leather-like carapace that’s extremely rounded and flattened. The shell color can be olive grey or yellow-brown. Just like other softshell turtles, this species also has a snorkel-like snout.

The young ones feature well-defined round spots that are easily visible on the shell (though these spots become invisible as they transition to adulthood).

Spiny softshell turtles in Kansas tend to eat anything they find in the waters including crayfish, insects, small fish, and so on. They hunt by burying themselves in the mud or sand while keeping their head uncovered to grab food as it swims by.

These turtles are also able to breathe underwater by taking in oxygen through their throat skin. This is a useful adaptation given that they don’t spend a lot of time out of water.

Other adaptations of these turtles include webbed feed, long claws, and extremely flat shells that enable them to quickly swim away from predators and burry in the muddy bottom of the waters they reside in.

10. Painted Turtle

• Scientific name: Chrysemys picta
• Common name: Painted Turtle
• Family: Emydidae
• Size: 4 to 6 inches
• Lifespan: 30 to 50 years
• Conservation status: Least Concern

The Eastern painted turtle is one of the most recognizable turtle species in Kansas, thanks to its beautiful and unique coloring. The bright reds and yellow-green markings on its shell, head, and limbs are no doubt a beauty to behold!

This painted turtle sub-species in Kansas has been observed to live near water bodies with minimal movements. Examples include marshes, ponds, slow-moving streams with sandy/muddy bottoms, small lakes, etc.

They also prefer areas with aquatic plants in plenty as they make their primary food source in the wild.

One interesting fact about these Kansas turtles is their ability to hold their breath for up to 30 hours when inside temperate water. Moreover, they’re capable of standing dominant in freezing cold waters for up to 4 months.

Unfortunately, it’s not easy to establish the population of these turtles in Kansas. This is because most people who pet them end up releasing them back into the wild. This contributes to an ever-expanding range plus unstable reproduction rates for these turtles.

11. River Cooter

• Scientific name: Pseudemys concinna
• Common name: River Cooter
• Family: Emydidae
• Size: 8 to 12 inches
• Lifespan: 20 to 40 years
• Conservation status: Least Concern

River Cooter turtles are also inhabitants of Kansas. They’re known to be solitary creatures and often like basking alone in the sun. However, they can be sometimes observed sharing habitat with painted turtles and red-eared sliders.

They’re distinguishable by their brown to olive or dark-green outer shell and lighter c-shaped, concentric markings in their scutes. Their skin can be olive or olive-brown in color, with numerous yellow lines.

Most of these turtle adults are around 8 to 12 inches in size, though it’s not rare to come across females with a bigger size—up to 15 inches.

These turtles are pretty fast both on land and in water. They’re found in various freshwater bodies including lakes, ponds, and rivers in Kansas. They’re also found in brackish water.

Their diet is primarily herbivorous and mainly consists of various forms of aquatic vegetation and land plant matter, including fruits and vegetables. They’re however known to occasionally feed on insects and snails.

12. Pond Sliders

• Scientific name: Trachemys scripta
• Common name: Pond slider
• Family: Emydidae
• Size: 7 to 12 inches
• Lifespan: 30 to 40 years
• Conservation status: Least Concern

Pond sliders is a term used to refer to 3 sub-species of turtles namely yellow belly sliders, red-eared sliders, and Cumberland sliders. For all these 3 subspecies, the males are usually smaller than the females and have thicker tails.

Baby pond sliders are characterized by green shells and a yell-green or dark green skin color. But this color fades as they age. Males, in particular, tend to get darker. Their legs, neck, and head feature yellow marks and stripes alongside this dark appearance.

Red-eared sliders are often confused with painted turtles due to red markings at the jawline plus brightly colored stripes. However, their carapace is more rounded and helmet-like compared to those of painted turtles. Sliders are also bigger than painted turtles in captivity.

Pond sliders in Kansas prefer living in slow-moving waters such as rivers, ponds, lakes, and swamps. They also prefer habitats with muddy bottoms.

As for the diet, pond sliders are omnivorous but they’re more into eating vegetation in their adult age. The young ones are more carnivorous and will eat meat more.

People commonly purchase this turtle species in Kansas as a pet but later on release it into the world when it becomes difficult to take care of or gets too large. But this isn’t a good practice as it can cause pressure on the natural ecosystem.

13. Three-Toed Box Turtle

• Scientific name: Terrapene triunguis
• Common name: N/A
• Family: Emydidae
• Size: 4.5 to 5 inches
• Lifespan: 50 and 100 years
• Conservation status: Vulnerable

The three-toed box turtles inhabit the thickets, prairies, and woodlands of Southwest Kansas. They’re easily identifiable by the 3 toes on their hind limbs, unlike the usual 4 toes on other box turtle species.

They have a uniform olive to brown shell color, sometimes with light spots or streaks. Bright yellow or orange spots are also occasionally spotted on the turtle species’ head and leg.

A mature three-toed box turtle has an average size of 4.5 to 5 inches.

They are unlike other box turtles in that they’re the only species that will remain healthy if you have them in indoor enclosures.

Being omnivorous in nature, these Kansas turtles are known to eat snails, insects, earthworms, slugs, mushrooms, strawberries, and green-leafed vegetation. They have also been spotted eating quail eggs.

14. Ornate Box Turtle

• Scientific name: Terrapene ornata
• Common name: Ornate Box Turtle
• Family: Emydidae
• Size: 5 to 7 inches
• Lifespan: 40 to 60 years
• Conservation status: Near Threatened

Ornate box turtles are present in Kansas and are recognized by the beautiful pattern on their carapace. This eye-pleasing pattern is sometimes referred to as a starburst pattern.

Their skin is grey and may feature yellow or white spots. Male heads occasionally feature green color.

Though there exists little distinction between the males and females of these Kansas box turtles, males are generally smaller than females.

During hot weather, this turtle requires water to help regulate its body temperature.

The Kansas species of turtle are known to hibernate in burrows during cold weather. They’re also capable of surviving in frozen soils for several days.

Being omnivorous in nature, and opportunistic feeders, these turtles will gladly feed anything available to them in their habitat or what’s abundant in a given season. They have been observed eating fruits, vegetables, grasshoppers, and various other insects.

Also, keep in mind that these box turtles in Kansas are pretty shy and don’t like being handled excessively. As such, you may want to avoid approaching them suddenly while in the wild in Kansas.

Related: Turtles In Georgia

Conclusion

These are the 14 species of turtles that have been observed in Kansas state. Just like most US states, this state also enjoys diversity when it comes to turtles in its region.

You’ll find snapping turtles, mud turtles, pond sliders, box turtles, musk turtles, painted turtles, and softshell turtles.

Remember, Kansas receives varying climate conditions which offer the perfect living conditions for various turtle species, hence the diversity in turtle species.