3,262 Records

Eastern Painted Turtle (Chrysemys picta picta) is the subspecies of painted turtle found through most of Maryland. In extreme western Maryland, it is replaced by the Midland Painted Turtle (C. p. marginata). Eastern Painted Turtles are named for the colorful red and yellow markings on the head and shell. This abundant aquatic turtle is often a conspicuous inhabitant of ponds, lakes, slower rivers, and ditches with aquatic vegetation, frequently spending much of their time basking on rocks or logs (Conant & Collins, 1998). This subspecies ranges throughout most of Maryland, and may intergrade with Midland where ranges come into contact in western Maryland (Maryland DNR website).

Eastern Painted Turtle has the edges of the large scutes on the dorsal carapaces more or less aligned into rows across the back. In Midland, the edges of the central scutes and lateral scutes alternate, and are not in obvious, discrete rows.