Desert Box Turtle
Terrapene ornata luteola
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- T. o. luteola – Cochise Co, AZ – photo by Steve Bledsoe
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- T. o. luteola – Cochise Co, AZ – photo by Steve Bledsoe
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- T. o. luteola – Cochise Co, AZ – photo by Steve Bledsoe
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- T. o. luteola – Cochise Co, AZ – photo by Tom Brennan
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- Map by Steve Bledsoe, SWCHR
DISTRIBUTION: In our region, Terrapene o. luteola occurs in the Big Bend Region of Texas, southern New Mexico and southeastern Arizona.
LEGAL STATUS: Terrapene o. luteola is listed as a Closed Season species in Arizona.
MEANING OF SCIENTIFIC NAME: Terrapene ornata luteola (Smith & Ramsey – 1952)
Genus: Terrapene, derived from Native American word for turtle
Species: ornata, Latin = decorated, adorned – ref. ornate radiated pattern on upper shell
Subspecies: luteola, Latin – lutea = yellow + ola = becoming (“-ish”) — “may refer to the tendency of shells in aging adults of this subsp. to become overall yellowish or ‘horn-colored’ (with a concomitant loss of the radiated pattern), a characteristic not seen in the nominate race. Jim Stuart”
Ref. Ellen Beltz 2006
Ref. E. Jaeger 1962