He Everyone,
I found the cutest baby turtle, and I can't figure out what kind he is. I've looked at every species of turtle in MD on the web, and in my Audobon Field Guide and I can't find him. The closed is a Bog Turtle, but still not quite.

He is slightly larger than a quarter, no eggsack attached when I found him. He is light brown with elongated yellow spots down his spine. His spine is slightly raised. He has 4 round yellow spots on each side, one for each squared coastal scute. Hi plastron is brown and yellow. His eyes are dark. He is not hinged.

I found him on the farm where I keep my horse. I found him in the grass, there are several swamps and ponds. He was in between a swampy area and a pond, where I have yet to see one turtle in this particular pond. It has a lot of reeds in it and is very dense. No logs to bask on, and too dense for a larger turtle to swim. However there are lots of frogs and tadpoles. The turtles seem to like the swamp and a larger pond that doesn't have all those reeds in it alot better.

Anyway, I have him all set up in a small tank with an area for him to get out and dry off, a feeding area, and a swimming area. He's been eating turtle pellets. I'm no stranger to having turtles. I have a baby red eared slider which I keep in a large fish tank along with his island and fish friends that live there, and sometimes become dinner. I also had a painted turtle which I got as a baby and he just recently died after having him for 15 years.

Anyway, this is driving me crazy. I have not found anything that looks like him. I'm starting to wonder if maybe he is an albino or some kind of mutent color. He is a lighter shade of brown. Any ideas?? Thanks!

One more question, I will probably keep this baby. I've had my Slider for about 7 months, not sure how old he his, but he's approx. 4 inches. I'm not comfortable putting the little one in there yet, but after he gets a little bigger, I would like to keep them together. Can two different species live together. I've heard the Sliders are pretty social.

Can you post a photo of the baby turtle? It's hard to tell from written descriptions. Bog turtles are pretty rare so it's probably not that but I guess it's possible (possession would then be illegal for all sizes).

See enature.com and enter in your zip code to see turtles native to your area. They don't have all the species. Babies don't always look like adults either. There are various color variants but these are less likely in wild populations. My hatchling page at http://www.fishpondinfo.com/hatchling.htm has some photos of baby turtles that people have sent to me. If you find the turtle is rare (or even if he's not), it would be best to release him so he can grow up and make more turtles.

Two species can live together but should be of similar sizes. The hatchling would have trouble competing for food and the best spots with larger turtles.

A friend at work is a turtle expert and seems to think its a Bog Turtle. His habits seems to be consistant. He likes to dig into the gravel and hide with his cute head sticking out.

I recently read that the numbers are more that what was previously thought because these guys are so secretive and hard to find. He still doesnt quite look like the pictures I've seen of the adults or hatchlings, so I'm still not positive, but I found him next to a swampy area which seems consistant with this species.

I don't want to let him go where I found him, which is on a farm where he could be trampled by cows and horses, plus they're developing all around us and I'm afraid his habitat will decrease.

I'm probably going to give him to a local wildlife rehabber and see if she can find a safer place for him to live. I'll get a picture up as soon as I can.

So far he's doing well, he's eating turtle pellets and chopped up worms I'm giving him, he's alert and healthy looking, I'm almost inclined to keep him......he's soo precious!

If he is indeed a bog turtle, you were lucky to find one. Because they are so rare and each one counts so much for the next generation, I think it would be best to release him or a have the rehabilitator do that. Plus, while the DNR often ignores illegal turtles, the high profile bog turtle gets more attention so if they find out you have one, you would be fined and who knows what happens to the turtle.

You may find these articles of interest:
http://nc-es.fws.gov/reptile/bogtur.html
http://sites.state.pa.us/Fish/anglerboater...98/bogturtl.htm
http://www.dnr.state.md.us/irc/bogturtles/introduction.html

Here is the permit section for MD wildlife. The bog turtle is in List C.
http://www.dnr.state.md.us/wildlife/captive.asp
[No reptiles or amphibians from List C may be possessed, bred, or sold. These animals may only be held in accordance with a Scientific Collection Permit or an Endangered Species Permit issued by the Department of Natural Resources.]

I decided to take him to the Patexent Wildlife Preserve in Laurel MD. I noticed that you are from MD, are you familair or have you ever been there? Its been a couple year since I've been there, but its a beautiful place. Many ponds/lakes wetlands and all kinds of wildlife. I think my turtle will be very happy there.

I'm just worried that something is going to eat him before he matures. He won't be able to breed until he is 5-7 years old, so I hope he makes it. He's so tiny, a bird or snake could easily make a meal out of him.

I'm going to take a picture of him before I take him there, I'll post for you to see. He looks like no other turtle I've ever seen, and I'm pretty familiar with different turtle species. I've searched the intranet and went thru all my reptile books etc. but like I said he resembles the Bog Turtle, but he's not an exact match, although his habits seem consistant. Thier heads look identical, same eye, same shaped head, but his markings are different. I even thought that maybe being a hatchling, he would change as he matures, but I found a picture of hatchling Bogs, and they look like little adults.

Maybe one of the naturlist at the Wildlife Preserve can give me some insight.

I've actually never been there even though it's less than an hour from me. I've almost gone a few times but my mother changed her mind. Please let me know what they say about the turtle's species. Predation risk can be high for most baby animals but that's part of being wild. Hopefully he'll beat the odds.

They wouldnt take the turtle, said that they can't risk introducing disease etc., so I still have him. I fixed up a tank for him with a shallow area with water, and a dry area with some fake plants and areas for him to hide. He seems to be doing well, he's eating and moving about. I'm so temped to just keep him. I almost had a picture of him, my son's girlfried took it with her digital camera and for some reason couldnt get it to come out. Guess I'll have to resort to using up a whole roll of film to get a picture of him. I still think he's a Bog Turtle, but I'm not sure.

They didn't tell you which species that they thought he was? They didn't harp at you that you have the turtle illegally? I would have thought they would have confiscated the turtle even if they weren't going to release it. The laws are such that if the turtle has only been captive for less than two months and has had no contact with other animals in captivity, then it's fine to release it. Of course the turtle could still have diseases or parasites it had in the wild but not the harder-to-deal-with ones from captivity which prevents release. Now, if this turtle has been in contact with your other ones, it would be considered non-releasable.