114 



NATURAL HISTORY OF VERMONT. 



Part I. 



THE SCULl'TLTREU TORTOISE. 



THE SNAPPING TORTOISE. 



painted Tortoise is first liatched it is very 

 thin and nearly circular, and the color of 

 the sternum deep red. As it grows the 

 back becomes more elevated and the sides 

 compressed, and tiie red of the sternum 

 usually assumes a yellowish hue, and in 

 some cases the red entirely disappears, 

 leaving the sternum vsliolly yellow. It 

 feeds upon shell-fish, insects and reptiles. 



THE SCULPTURED TORTOISE. 

 Emys insculpla. — Le Conte. 



Description. — Shell oval, slightly car- 

 inated and emarginate behind ; all the 

 plates with yellowish radiating lines and 

 stria?, cut by otlier concentric stria; ; first 

 vertebral f)late pentagonal, the 2d, 3d and 

 4th subhexagonal, the .5th octagonal ; six 

 of its faces anterior; 1st and 4th lateral 

 plates pentagonal, -id and 3d subheptago- 

 nal ; intermediate marginal plate very 

 narrow; the first pentagonal projecting a 

 little beyond the next ; the rest mostly 

 quadrangular ; the three plates on each 

 side of the caudal plates slightly revo- 

 lute ; sternum notched behind, yellow 

 and striated, all the plates being marked 

 vi'ith a large black spot on their posterior 

 part ; plates under the throat triangular ; 

 all the rest quadrangular ; skin granula- 

 ted or scaly, reddish black above, dull red 

 beneath ; head, nails and tail black ; jaws 

 dark horn color, marked with yellow. 

 Length of the shell of the specimen be- 

 fore me 6.^ inches ; width .5J ; width of 

 the head 1 inch : length of the tail beyond 

 the shell l.i inch; height 3 inches. 



Plates D" 5, L. S, M. 2-5, S. 12. 



History. — Tliis species, when fully 

 grown, is a little larger than the ijreced- 

 ing. It is not so acjuiitic in its habits, it 

 being frequently found at a considerable 

 distance from the water, and being often 

 met with in the woods, it is sometimes 

 called the Wood Tortoise. Tlie Sculptured 

 Tortoise not only resorts lo coves, and 

 the deep, still waters of rivers, but is fre- 

 quently found taking shelter in the deep, 

 narrow rills in our pastures and meadows. 

 The lateral plates seem in this species to 

 be subject to some varialion. In one 

 of my full grown specimens the lateral 

 plates are only three, instead of four, 

 upon each side. Food of this species the 

 same as of the preceding. 



Genus Emysaurus. — Dumeril. 



Generic Ckaraclers. — Head large, covered 

 with small plates ; snout short ; jaws hooked ; 

 two warts benea'h the chin; sieriuim immovea- 

 ble, crucifani, composed of ten plates ; three ster- 

 no-costal plates ; fore feet with five claws, hind 

 f el with four ; tail lony, surmounted with a scaly 

 cresU 



THE SNAPPING TORTOISE. 

 Emysaurus serpentina. — Li.vn.'eus. 

 Description. — General color dark 

 greenish brown above, lighter and yel- 

 lowish beneath; upper shell oval, depress- 

 ed and notched behind; vertebral plates 

 scabrous ; lateral marked near the base 

 with concentric stria;; marginal oblong, 

 the six posterior ones forming six obtuse 

 teeth, projecting backwards ; sternum 

 narrow, lozenge-shaped, pointed and en- 

 tire at both ends; head, neck and limbs 

 very large and strong ; jaws sharp, hook- 

 ed ; skin of the neck and legs granular 

 above and warty beneath; two prominent 

 warts under tlie chin ; fore legs with 

 rows of broad sharp scales ; hind legs 

 with several broad scales beneath ; claws 

 strong, five before and four behind ; tail 

 straight, about two thirds the length of 

 the shell, tapering, and crested with largo 

 bony prominences, which gradually di- 

 minish towards the end; sides and under 

 part of the tail covered with smaller 

 scales. Length of the shell, of the speci- 

 men before me, 11 inches; width 9 in- 

 ches ; tail 8 in. ; head 3^ in. long, 2^ wide. 



Plates D. 5, L. 8, M. 25, S. 11. 



History. — This is the largest species 

 of Tortoise found in Vermont, often 

 weighing from 15 to 18 or 20 lbs. It ia 

 much more disposed to bite than the pre- 

 ceding species. It will seize upon a stick 

 held towards it, and suffer itself to be 

 raised by it from the ground sooner than 

 relinquish its hold ; and hence it is usually 

 called in New England tne Snapping 

 Turtle, or Tortoise. At the south it is 

 called the Alligator Tortoise, from the re- 

 semblance of its crested tail to that of the 

 Alligator. This species is often found at 

 a considerable distance from water, and 

 will live a long time wnthont water. It 

 feeds u])on fishes, reptiles, and young 



