Turtles in Texas

Texas has diverse habitats, including coastal marshes, deserts, and swamps. This allows freshwater and saltwater turtles to live here, like the Green Sea Turtle, the Western Painted Turtle, and the Texas Tortoise.

Types of Turtles Found in Texas

Sea Turtles (Cheloniidae)

• Loggerhead Sea Turtle
• Green Sea Turtle
• Kemp’s Ridley Sea Turtle

Snapping Turtles (Chelydridae)

• Common Snapping Turtle
• Alligator Snapping Turtle

Leatherback Sea Turtles (Dermochelyidae)

• Leatherback Sea Turtle

Hawksbill Turtles (Eretmochelys)

• Hawksbill Turtle

Emydid Turtles (Emydidae)

Painted Turtles

• Southern Painted Turtle
• Western Painted Turtle

Chicken Turtles

• Western Chicken Turtle

Map Turtles

• Ouachita Map Turtle
• Cagle’s Map Turtle
• False Map Turtle
• Mississippi Map Turtle
• Sabine Map Turtle
• Texas Map Turtle

Terrapins

• Texas Diamond-backed Terrapin

Cooters

• Missouri River Cooter
• Rio Grande Cooter
• Texas River Cooter

Box Turtles

• Three-toed Box Turtle
• Desert Box Turtle
• Ornate Box Turtle
• Western Box Turtle

Sliders

• Red-eared Slider
• Big Bend Slider

Mud and Musk Turtles (Kinosternidae)

• Eastern Mud Turtle
• Razor-backed Musk Turtle 
• Eastern Musk Turtle (Stinkpot)
• Big Bend Mud Turtle
• Rough-footed Mud Turtle
• Yellow Mud Turtle

Softshell Turtles (Trionychidae)

• Midland Smooth Softshell
• Guadalupe Spiny Softshell
• Pallid Spiny Softshell
• Texas Spiny Softshell

Tortoises (Testudinidae)

• Texas Tortoise

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