662 MARINE PRODUCTS OF COMMERCE 



dozen, and larger ones command higher prices. They possess highly esteemed 

 edible qualities and are very scarce. 



Diamondback terrapins are found chiefly in salt or brackish marshes near the 

 coast, and were abundant at one time. These terrapins belong to the genus 

 Malaclemys, having 4 species and 1 subspecies: the Carolina terrapin {Malaclemys 

 centrata), with a range extending from central North Carolina to Florida; the 

 Chesapeake terrapin (M. centrata concentrica) , which occurs in Chesapeake Bay 

 southward to the North Carolina sounds and northward to Buzzards Bay; the 

 Florida terrapin (M. macrospilota) , along the Gulf coast of Florida; the Louisiana 

 terrapin (M. pileata), which inhabits the coast east and west of the mouth of the 

 Mississippi River; and the Texas terrapin (M. littoralis), which occurs along the 

 coast of Texas and southward. 



Although terrapins were once plentiful in the salt marshes along the Atlantic 

 Coast, relatively few are found in that locality at present. The fishery is centered 

 in Maryland and Virginia; in 1945 those states produced terrapin valued at 

 $114,875. 



Habits and Propagation. Because of the threatened extinction of this valuable 

 aquatic animal the U. S. Bureau of Fisheries (now Fish and Wildlife Service) 

 and the North Carolina Geologic and Economic Survey have made extensive 

 studies concerning its habits and life history, and have carried out comprehensive 

 researches extending over many years on methods of propagation. A large part 

 of these studies were carried out at the Biological and Fish Cultural Station at 

 Beaufort, North Carolina. 



Although at low tide terrapins are usually found nearly or entirely buried in 

 the mud or hidden under drift, some may be occasionally seen crawling about. 

 At high tide they swim over the marshes in search of crabs, snails and other 

 gastropods, and marine worms on which they feed. Terrapins grow rather slowly, 

 requiring about 6 years to reach maturity; the female at that time is 5/2 or 6 inches 

 long and the male about 4 or 4/2 inches long. In the spring or early summer the 

 terrapins lay their eggs at a depth of 3 to 8 inches on sandy elevations in the 

 marshes usually above the high-tide mark. The "nests" contain on the average of 

 a dozen eggs each, but this amount may vary from 2 to 12. The eggs hatch about 

 3 months after they are laid; the newly hatched terrapins seldom eat any food 

 before they hibernate, but live during the winter on the masses of egg yolk in 

 their stomachs. 



Many individuals have attempted to raise terrapins, but without much success. 

 It required a thorough study of the problem for the Fisheries' investigators to dis- 

 cover the cause of the failures. These investigators succeeded by studying the 

 terrapins in their native abode and then by keeping them under conditions similar 

 to those to which they were accustomed. 



The terrapins are impounded on a well-protected gently sloping shore of 

 sand or clayey sand, so situated that at high tide every part of the enclosure, with 

 the exception of the egg beds, is covered with water, and at low tide half the area 

 is still covered. The enclosed area should allow at least 10 square feet for each 

 impounded adult terrapin. The walls of the pen must be high enough and strong 

 enough to overtop the highest tides by at least 3 feet and to resist any waves 

 which may strike them. The pen is divided into two parts— a large area for the 

 adult terrapins and a much smaller one for the young. The enclosure for the young 



