The painted turtle is easily distinguished from all other turtle species in Washington by the bright red or orange red markings on the plastron and undersides of the marginal scales of the carapace. These colorful markings are usually visible on basking turtles.
Painted Turtle (Chrysemys picta)
Description: Painted turtles are relatively small turtles (5-7 in; 10-18 cm carapace length), colorful with dark shells and yellow stripes on the legs and, blotches or spots on their heads. The edges of the shell are smooth, not serrated, and may have red or yellow hieroglyphic-like patterns on the edge of the otherwise yellow or orange-yellow plastron. Southern painted turtles are distinguished from other sub-species by a red or yellow stripe that runs down the carapace from head to tail. Their black legs also have red stripes. Females grow larger than males, but adult males have much longer front claws, which they use in mating displays. Hatchlings look like miniature, more brightly-colored adults.
Range and Habitat: The several subspecies of painted turtles are found across much of the continental US and into Canada. Painted turtles are found in the Piedmont and further inland to the mountains of Georgia and South Carolina. They are rarely but occasionally found below the Fall Line and closer to the coast. They prefer aquatic habitats with vegetation and muddy bottoms including farm ponds, slow-moving rivers and oxbow lakes, freshwater marshes and beaver ponds. They can also be found in roadside ditches and seasonal wetlands.
Habits: Painted turtles have a varied, omnivorous diet and are frequently seen basking on logs or rocks or some other available site. They are most active from March to November, but may be encountered on warm days throughout the year. They mate in early spring (males are known to move between aquatic habitats, presumably looking for mates) with the females coming out of the water to nest during the day in May and June. They typically lay 2-8 eggs, sometimes a few more. The eggs hatch in late summer or early fall, but hatchlings usually remain in the nest until they emerge the following spring. Hatchlings are more carnivorous than adults and grow quickly, sometimes doubling in size in their first growing season.
Conservation Status: Painted turtles are fairly abundant throughout their range. Their ability to adapt to aquatic environments altered by man contributes to the relative stability of many populations of the species.
Pertinent References:
Ernst, Carl H and Jeffrey E. Lovich. 2009. Turtles of the United States and Canada. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore. pp. 184-211.
Congdon, J. D. and D. W. Tinkle. 1982. Reproductive energetics of the painted turtle ( Chrysemys picta ). Herpetologica 38: 228-237.
Frazer, N. B., J. W. Gibbons, and J. L. Greene. 1991. Growth, survivorship and longevity of painted turtles Chrysemys picta in a southwestern Michigan marsh. The American Midland Naturalist 125: 245-258.
Gibbons, J. W. 1968. Reproductive potential, activity, and cycles in the painted turtle, Chrysemys picta . Ecology 49: 399-409.
Zweifel, Richard G. 1989. Long-term ecological studies on a population of painted turtles, Chrysemys picta , on Long Island, New York. American Museum Novitates (2952): 1-55.
Account Author: Judith Greene, SREL – edited by Whit Gibbons
Hatchling painted turtles
Description and Range
The painted turtle is a medium-sized aquatic turtle with a dark colored upper carapace (upper shell); bright red markings on the plastron (lower shell) and marginal carapace. The skin is black to olive with yellow stripes on the head, neck, legs, and tail. Adults range in size from 2.5 to 10 inches. Males are smaller; have elongate front claws on the three middle digits (digits 2, 3, and 4) that are used for courtship; and have a long thick tail with the opening to the vent located posterior to the margin of the carapace when the tail is extended. Juveniles resemble the adults but with brighter coloration.
The carapace is olive, dark brown or black; it may have yellow and red borders on the seams and has prominent red bars or spots on the undersides of the marginals (edge scales). Except in old individuals, the carapace is relatively smooth. No dorsal (topside) keel exists except a weak one in hatchlings. The posterior (underside) marginals are not serrated. The plastron is stunningly red. A large, lobed, yellow and black blotch exists in the center of the plastron, with the lobes following the plastral seams.
With age, the color of the plastron fades and the carapace becomes pitted and worn.
For more details, see the Washington Herp Atlas.
Ecology and life history
The painted turtle is primarily aquatic, straying from water only to lay eggs, for dispersal and at times of drought. Aquatic habitats include lakes, ponds, wetlands, and slow flowing areas of rivers and creeks. They prefer habitats that have muddy sediments and lots of aquatic vegetation. Terrestrial habitats include shrub-steppe, grassland, and forest. The wet, cool, mesic forests of western Washington are not suitable habitat.
Painted turtles are diurnal. They shelter under water at night and start the day by basking on rocks, logs and the shore. Basking also takes place throughout the day. They tend to be common where they occur and are easily spotted by searching basking sites. They are wary of people and will quickly slip into the water when approached. Often, individuals return to the surface swimming vertically with their heads protruding out of the water.
Research has shown that juvenile painted turtles, when taken by largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides), will thrash and claw, often eliciting their release by the predator. This behavior is not exhibited by all turtle species but appears to give survival advantages to the painted turtle where predatory fish large enough to engulf juveniles, such as largemouth bass, are present.
This species is active as soon as water temperatures warm and the sun’s rays create conditions suitable for basking, usually in late March or early April. Female turtles migrate from water bodies to terrestrial egg laying sites in late spring and early summer. Turtles in Skamania County lay eggs in late May and June. In eastern Washington, egg laying takes place in June to July. Incubation time is not known from Washington populations, but the literature indicates 72 to 104 days from other areas in the Northwest. Turtles hatch in late summer or early fall and may migrate to breeding ponds or overwinter in the nest.
Adults overwinter in bottom sediments or within the flooded banks of water bodies.
Geographic range
Painted turtles have been documented in all Washington ecoregions but most occurrences are at the lower elevations of eastern Washington, the Columbia Gorge and the Puget Trough. The species was likely introduced to the Puget Sound region as the earliest records (Marysville – 1958, Bigelow Lake – 1960, and Ravenna Park – 1967) are relatively recent and associated with urban and residential areas. Today, the species is well-distributed throughout the Puget Sound region. Elsewhere in Washington, painted turtles are likely native.
This map from the Washington Herp Atlas illustrates the distribution of panted turtle in Washington based on records in the WDFW database as of 2016. If you see this species in areas that are not indicated on the map or have more recent observations (less than 10 years), please share your observation using the WDFW wildlife reporting form.
For a map of range-wide distribution and conservation status of this species, check out NatureServe Explorer and the International Union for Conservation of Nature Redlist.
