36 TORTOISES, TERRAPINS, AND TURTLES 



greatest number of schoolrooms, in the United States. It 

 inhabits the whole region east of the Mississippi River except 

 the extreme southeastern states, or about one-half of the 

 entire country. Its shell is from 6 to 8 inches in length, 

 and its contour is rather flat. The plates of the carapace 

 are greenish black, edged with yellow, and those around the 

 margin are marked with bright red. The under shell (plas- 

 tron) is yellow with brown markings; and the legs and tail 

 are dark brown, marked with bright-red lines. The upper 

 jaw is notched in front. 



This small boy's favorite is a very common species, and 

 nine times out of ten when a nice, well-behaved little Ter- 

 rapin is seen sunning itself on the hurricane-deck of a dere- 

 lict log, ready to drop into the water with a gentle flash 

 when Small Boy api^roaches dangerously near, that is It. 

 It is called the Pond Terrapin because it dislikes the nerve- 

 wrecking hilarity of a river which rushes past at two or three 

 miles per hour, but prefers a nice, quiet little 4x5 pond, 

 where it can vegetate quite unmolested. In captivity its 

 food consists of chopped fish and meat and angle-worms. 



The Ellachick,^ of the Pacific slope, from the Sierra 

 Nevadas to the coast, and from southern California to Van- 

 couver, is the most important species in that region. It is 

 good for food, and is frequently seen in the markets of the 

 large cities on or near the coast. It is about the size of the 

 painted terrapin. 



The Diamond-Backed Terrapin^ of the salt marshes is, 

 most unfortunately, famous for the flavor of its flesh, and 



1 Chel'o-pus mar-mo-ra'tus. ^ Mal-a-co-clem'mys pa-lus'tris. 



