Graptemys flavimaculata is confined to the Pascagoula River system, including the Leaf, Chickasawhay, and Escatawpa rivers, in southern Mississippi. The Leaf and Chickasawhay Rivers merge to form the Pascagoula; the Escatawpa is a tributary which joins the lower Pascagoula just before its estuary (USFWS 1993). The total range comprises less than 760 km of river [Pascagoula = 130 km, Leaf = 290 km, Chickasawhay = 340 km, but not all of this area is occupied: see the 'Population' section].

Graptemys flavimaculata are only found in the Pascagoula River drainage, occurring in the Pascagoula, Leaf,

and Chickasawhay Rivers in southern Mississippi in the United States. Based on mark and recapture studies, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks biologists estimated the population at 336 individuals per mile in the lower Pascagoula River, while basking studies on the upper Pascagoula, Leaf and Chickasawhay rivers revealed an average of four turtles per mile (USFWS 1992).

Biogeographic Regions: nearctic (Native )

endemic to a single state or province

United States

Origin: Native

Regularity: Regularly occurring

Currently: Present

Confidence: Confident

Type of Residency: Year-round

Global Range: (5000-20,000 square km (about 2000-8000 square miles)) Pascagoula River system, including the Leaf, Chickasawhay, and Escatawpa rivers, southern Mississippi. Apparently most abundant in Pascagoula River beteeen Wade and Vancleave, Mississippi (USFWS 1990). The largest population is in the Pascagoula River in Jackson County, mainly in the Ward Bayou Wildlife Management Area (Horne et al. 2003).

Continent: North-America
Distribution: USA (Pascagoula River system in Mississippi, introduced to Florida)  
Type locality: Pascagoula River, 13 miles S.W. of Lucedale, George Co., Mississippi.

Historic Range:
U.S.A. (MS)

Graptemys flavimaculata, an aquatic turtle species, has very pronounced sexual dimorphism in body size. The larger adult females measure between 14.9-18.0 cm, whereas the adult males measure between 6.7-11.0 cm. They are small, narrow-headed turtles with a serrated posterior carapacial margin, and laterally compressed spinelike vertebral projections. The spines are a major characteristic of adult males and juveniles but are less noticeable in females. The carapace is olive to light brown in color, with each costal scute marked by a bright yellow or orange blotch. The shape of this blotch varies from a bar to a semicircle, or a complete circle. The marginal plates have orange bars or semicircular patterns that open posteriorly. The hingeless plastron is light cream in color, with a black pattern extending along the seams. These black markings fade with age. The head of yellow-blotched map turtles is small to moderate in size with a nonprojecting snout and has neither hook nor notch on the upper jaw. The skin is olive colored with yellow stripes. Overall, yellow stripes can be found on the head, neck, legs, and tail. A yellow triangle or spot is common behind the eye. Generally, the yellow color dominates throughout the body of Graptemys flavimaculata (Ernst et al.1994; Barbour 1989).

Length: 18 cm

See McCoy and Vogt (1994) for a key to species in the genus Graptemys.

Habitat and Ecology

Systems

• Terrestrial
• Freshwater

Graptemys flavimaculata usually live in sand and clay bottomed streams with moderate to rapid currents, and several hours of sun penetration daily. Piles of brush and debris provide basking locations, and tangled roots provide shelter. (Barbour 1989; USFWS 1992).

Aquatic Biomes: rivers and streams

Comments: River sections with moderate current, sand and clay bottom with many sand bars, or rocky bottom with limestone ledges along banks (less abundant in rocky areas). Most abundant in areas with tangled tree roots and logs in water (basking sites). Needs river wide enough to allow several hours of sunshine daily. Also uses oxbow lakes, semi-permanent ponds, and occasionally temporary flood pools (Jones 1996). Nests on sandbars or in small clearings along bank of river such as on a clay bank with a steep slope, usually 1-17 m (mean 8 m) from water (Horne et al. 2003).

Non-Migrant: Yes. At least some populations of this species do not make significant seasonal migrations. Juvenile dispersal is not considered a migration.

Locally Migrant: No. No populations of this species make local extended movements (generally less than 200 km) at particular times of the year (e.g., to breeding or wintering grounds, to hibernation sites).

Locally Migrant: No. No populations of this species make annual migrations of over 200 km.

In southeastern Mississippi, some were relatively sedentary but others moved seasonally (related to reproduction, feeding, or avoidance of increased currents in winter) (Jones 1996).

In Mississippi, mean male home range area was 1.12 ha, mean home range length was 1.8 km; these values for females were 5.75 ha and 1.5 km (difference is not significant) (Jones 1996).

Graptemys flavimaculata eat insect larvae and mollusks, and it has been speculated that there may be a sexual difference in feeding preference in this species as in other map turtles (Ernst et al. 1994; George 1991).

Comments: Primary diet consists of snails and insects.

Note: For many non-migratory species, occurrences are roughly equivalent to populations.

Estimated Number of Occurrences: 1 - 20

2500 - 100,000 individuals

Comments: Total adult population size is unknown but likely is at least a few thousand. Forty-four individuals were sighted in a one-year study in 1979. In the 1990s, In the 1990s, Horne et al. (2003) marked more than 1,100 individuals at a site along the Pascagoula River.

Incurs a high level of nest mortality as a result of river flooding and predation by fish crow and other animals (90% mortality in some years) (Horne et al. 2003).

Comments: Active throughout the year in southeastern Mississippi (Jones 1996).

The reproductive habits of Graptemys flavimaculata are poorly studied. During courtship, male and female attempt to stroke one another's heads with their claws while facing each other (Wahlquist 1970, cited in Ernst et al. 1994). Nesting occurs in the sand and gravel bars adjacent to the rivers in which these turtles occur (USFWS 1992). It is believed that Graptemys flavimaculata have a similar reproductive pattern to other related Graptemys species which reach reproductive maturity between the ages of 6 to 9 years. They produce 3-4 clutches of eggs with 5-7 eggs per clutch (Champie 1998) .

Nests from mid- to late May through early to mid-August; clutch size 3-9 (mean 4.7); at least some adult females are not reproductive each year; most adult females apparently do not produce more than one clutch per reproductive year (Horne et al. 2003). Males are sexually mature in 3-4 years (or reportedly in second growing season), females later (perhaps at 6-9 years) (Behler and King 1979, USFWS 1990).

Barcode of Life Data Systems (BOLDS) Stats
Public Records: 0
Species: 1
Species With Barcodes: 1

Year Assessed

Assessor/s

Reviewer/s

Contributor/s

Justification

History

• 1996
  Endangered
• 1994
  Indeterminate
  (Groombridge 1994)
• 1990
  Indeterminate
  (IUCN 1990)
• 1988
  Indeterminate
  (IUCN Conservation Monitoring Centre 1988)

Graptemys flavimaculata is endangered. Although apparently not affected directly by pollution, populations may decline as pollutants adversely affect their food supply of insects and mollusks. Declining populations are attributed to channel modification for flood control and navigation purposes, which destroys basking and nesting areas, and increases siltation and turbidity of rivers, causing disruption in the food supply (USFWS 1992). Populations may also be threatened by the habit of local sportsmen of using basking turtles for target practice (McCoy and Vogt 1980, cited in Ernst et al. 1994). An estimated cost for the recovery of this species over a fifteen year period is $845,000 (Champie 1998).

US Federal List: threatened

CITES: no special status

IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: endangered

United States

Rounded National Status Rank: N2 - Imperiled

Rounded Global Status Rank: G2 - Imperiled

Reasons: Small range in the Pascagoula River system, Mississippi; habitat alteration is a major threat; small population size; may warrant G1.

Intrinsic Vulnerability: Highly to moderately vulnerable.

Current Listing Status Summary

Status: Threatened
Date Listed: 01/14/1991
Lead Region:   Southeast Region (Region 4) 
Where Listed:


Population detail:

Population location: entire
Listing status: T

For most current information and documents related to the conservation status and management of Graptemys flavimaculata , see its USFWS Species Profile

Population

Population Trend

Global Short Term Trend: Relatively stable to decline of 30%

Comments: Population densities seem to have declined in recent years (USFWS 1993).

Global Long Term Trend: Increase of 10-25% to decline of 50%

Comments: Now absent from some areas of the Pascagoula River system where formerly abundant (Horne et al. 2003).

Major Threats

Degree of Threat: B : Moderately threatened throughout its range, communities provide natural resources that when exploited alter the composition and structure of the community over the long-term, but are apparently recoverable

Comments: Threatened by habitat modification such as by navigation and flood control projects; changing water levels during the nesting season and more flooding than normal of sand bar nest sites (Bob Jones, pers. comm., 1995); gravel dredging; sedimentation from gravel mining, timber harvesting, and agricultural activities; loss of basking sites and nesting areas, and by wanton shooting, collecting for pet trade, water quality degradation due to various industries, and nest predation (see USFWS 1990 for details and for results of 1989 survey).

In the Pascagoula River, this turtle exhibits low reproductive frequency, high nest mortality, and an unexpectedly high level of nesting in shaded areas along the riverbank, perhaps in response to human disturbance on and near sandbars (Horne et al. 2003). In the absence of extraordinarily high adult survival, this population probably will decline because of low recruitment (Horne et al. 2003).

Conservation Actions

Management Requirements: This species would benefit from better law enforcement to protect adult turtles, public education, and possibly protection of nests on the nesting beaches (Horne et al. 2003).

Biological Research Needs: Research life history, alternate habitats.

Global Protection: Unknown whether any occurrences are appropriately protected and managed

Needs: Protect all occurrences.

N/A

These turtles have been collected commericially, and have been listed for retail sale at $65 each. However, enforcement of laws protecting these animals has likely curtailed this activity (USFWS 1992).

Comments: Lamb et al. (1994) conducted a mtDNA-based phylogenetic analysis of turtles in the genus Graptemys and discovered three monophyletic lineages: G. pulchra group (including G. pulchra, G. gibbonsi, G. ernsti, and G. barbouri); G. pseudogeographica group (including G. pseudogeographica, G. nigrinoda, G. flavimaculata, G. oculifera, G. versa, G. caglei, and G. ouachitensis); and G. geographica. Overall genetic divergence was relatively low, and G. pseudogeographica, G. nigrinoda, G. flavimaculata, G. oculifera, and G. versa all shared the same mtDNA genotype. There was no evidence of infraspecific variation in any species. Walker and Avise (1998) reviewed these data and suggested that the Graptemys complex has been taxonomically oversplit at the species level.

McDowell (1964) concluded that the genus Graptemys should be included in the genus Malaclemys, but this arrangement generally has been rejected (e.g., see Dobie 1981 for information on osteological differences between the two genera).