THE MUSK TURTLE 



33 



"Turtle," Musk "Turtle" and similar terrapins with fixed 

 plastrons were included. To-day, oddly enough, there is a 

 decided inclination to leave the Box Tortoise in the Tortoise 

 Family where they belong and leave the Musk Turtle and 

 his nearest relatives in possession of the abandoned Order. 

 But to the general 

 reader, all this is of but 

 momentary interest. 



THE MUSK " TUR- 

 TLE," l or STINK-POT, 

 has been loaded down 

 with names in two 

 languages which pro- 

 claim a smelly charac- 

 ter. It is a common - 



... . MUSK "TURTLE." 



place little terrapin 



about 6 inches long, inhabiting quiet ponds or sluggish streams, 

 basking in the sun when it is safe to linger above high- 

 water mark. Occasionally it so far forgets itself as to swallow 

 a worm-baited hook and bring on trouble of two or three 

 kinds. Its regular food is aquatic insects, minnows, fish- 

 eggs, worms and, in fact, any fleshy creature slow enough to 

 be caught and small enough to be eaten. 



The Musk "Turtle," or Terrapin, is possessed of a very 

 noticeable musky odor, w^hich serves better as a distinguish- 

 ing character in the living specimen than its very dull color 

 and general commonplacedness of external appearance. Some- 

 times it shows a few spots; and the neck bears two stripes, 



1 Ar-o-mo-chel'ys o-dor-a'tus. 



