MUD TURTLE 
Closely related to the musk turtle, and also emitting an evil-smelling 
scent, the mud turtle dwells in muddy streams and ponds. It is also called 
the mud box terrapin, because its lower shell is hinged, enabling it to pull 
in its limbs, head and tail, and bring the two shells together like a box. 
Sometimes very old turtles are unable to use this defense because the two 
hinges become stiff and bony. 
The male is equipped with a sound-producing mechanism, which is 
used to attract the female during the mating season. Horny scales on the calf 
and thigh are rubbed together to produce a noise like the chirp of a cricket. 
During the winter the mud turtle leaves the water. According to Cahn 
it hibernates in higher ground, burrowing a cozy nook about ten inches 
below the surface. 
It feeds on small fishes and insects, and in captivity is quite willing 
to lunch on earthworms and chopped fish or beef. Although it eats other 
creatures, it is seldom attacked. However, snakes, weasels and skunks relish 
its eggs, which are found in mud or rotting logs. Three to five eggs, quite 
long and smooth, are laid by the mud turtle. 
The mud turtle is a trifle larger than the musk turtle. Its top shell 
is a drab brown, sometimes with black edges on the shields. One has lived 
in a washbowl for twenty-five years. It has been cared for by William T. 
Davis, President-Emeritus of the Staten Island Museum. 
Like their cousins, mud turtles have been kept in deep water without 
any ill effects. In rising to the surface for air, they exhibit no haste, but 
tread the water with an even movement of their webbed feet. 
As in all mud and musk turtles, the female is smaller than the 
male and has a smaller tail. 
The Arizona mud turtle, which swims in the swift currents of the 
muddy Colorado River, is the largest species in the United States. Its shell 
is six inches long. 
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