Smooth softshell turtle

Smooth softshell turtle
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Subphylum:	Vertebrata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Testudines
Suborder:	Cryptodira
Family:	Trionychidae
Subfamily:	Trionychinae
Genus:	Apalone
Species:	A. mutica
Binomial name
Apalone mutica (Lesueur, 1827)
Synonyms
Trionyx muticus Lesueur, 1827 Aspidonectes muticus — Wagler, 1830 Gymnopus muticus — A.M.C. Duméril, Bibron & A.H.A. Duméril, 1854 Amyda mutica — Agassiz, 1857 Trionyx muticus — Webb, 1959 Apolone mutica — Meylan, 1987 Apalone mutica mutica Trionyx pusilla Rafinesque, 1822 Trionyx muticus Lesueur, 1827 Aspidonectes muticus — Wagler, 1830 Gymnopus muticus — A.M.C. Duméril, Bibron & A.H.A. Duméril, 1854 Amyda mutica — Agassiz, 1857 Potamochelys microcephalus Gray, 1864 Callinia microcephala — Gray, 1869 Potamochelys microcephala — Boulenger, 1889 Trionyx muticus muticus — Webb, 1959 Apalone mutica — Meylan, 1987 Apalone muticus — Meylan & Webb, 1988 Apalone mutica mutica — Ernst & R. Barbour, 1989 Apalone mutica mutica — Stubbs, 1989 Trionix muticus — Richard, 1999 Apalone mutica calvata Trionyx pusilla Rafinesque, 1822 Trionyx muticus calvatus Webb, 1959 Apalone mutica calvata — Ernst & R. Barbour, 1989 Apalone mutica calvata — Stubbs, 1989

The smooth softshell turtle (Apalone mutica) is a species of softshell turtle of the family Trionychidae. The species is endemic to North America.

Geographic range

A. mutica lives mainly in the Mississippi River drainage, including the Ohio River and the lower Allegheny River.

Description

The smooth softshell turtle is usually brown or olive-colored, often with darker dots or dashes. The shell of the turtle is leathery and flexible. Many individuals, mostly including young turtles, may have a yellow ring around the outermost part of the shell. However, this is also true with other species of softshell. Apalone mutica is the only softshell without ridges in the nostrils. Females are 18–35.6 cm (7.1–14.0 in) in carapace length; males, 12.5–17.8 cm (4.9–7.0 in).

Diet

Typical foods of A. mutica include various macroinvertebrates such as aquatic insects, crayfish, and occasionally fish.

Reproduction

From May to July, adult females of A. mutica lay clutches of 3 to 28 eggs not more than 100 m (330 ft) from water in sandy areas.

Subspecies

Two subspecies are recognized, including the nominotypical subspecies.

• Apalone mutica calvata (Webb, 1959)
• Apalone mutica mutica (Lesueur, 1827)

Nota bene: A trinomial authority in parentheses indicates that the subspecies was originally described in a genus other than Apalone.

Sympatric species

Apalone mutica is sympatric with the spiny softshell turtle (Apalone spinifera) over much of its range.

Further reading

• Behler JL, King FW. 1979. The Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Reptiles and Amphibians. New York: Alfred A. Knopf. 743 pp. ISBN 0-394-50824-6. (Trionyx muticus, pp. 484–485 + Plates 268, 269).
• Boulenger GA. 1889. Catalogue of the Chelonians, Rhynchocephalians, and Crocodiles in the British Museum (Natural History). New Edition. London: Trustees of the British Museum (Natural History). (Taylor and Francis, printers). x + 311 pp. + Plates I-V. (Trionyx muticus, pp. 260–262, Figure 68).
• Lesueur CA. 1827. "Note sur deux espèces de tortues, du genre Trionyx de M[onsieur]. Geoffroy-Saint-Hilaire ". Mémoires du Muséum d'Histoire Naturelle, Paris 15: 257-268 + Plates 6-7. (Trionyx muticus, new species, pp. 263–266 + Plate 7). (in French).
• Smith HM, Brodie ED Jr. 1982. Reptiles of North America: A Guide to Field Identification. New York: Golden Press. 240 pp. ISBN 0-307-13666-3. (Trionyx muticus, pp. 32–33).