Turtles of the United States (Paperback)

The first comprehensive work in its field to be published since 1952, Turtles of the United States offers a survey of current knowledge concerning the life history of the forty-nine species of turtles native to the United States and Canada. In the account of each species the authors describe distinguishing features, similar species with which it might be confused, its habitat, characteristic behavior, and life history. Information in the accounts is drawn from the authors' own observations in the field and a survey of more than 1,500 research papers. To facilitate identification there is an illustrated key to the species represented in the book, and in a series of striking color photographs each turtle is shown in its natural setting. Numerous black and white photographs depict the skulls and details of physical structure. Maps indicate the range of each species in the United States. Appendixes treat parasites, commensals, and symbiosis; the origin of North American turtles; and the care of turtles in captivity.