The yellow-blotched map turtle (Graptemys flavimaculata), or yellow-blotched sawback, is a species of turtle in the family Emydidae. It is part of the narrow-headed group of map turtles, and is endemic to the southern United States.
Males have a mean home range area of 1.12 ha (2.77 acres) and a mean home range length of 1.8 km (1.1 mi). Females have a mean home range area of 5.75 ha (14.20 acres), due to nesting activities, and a mean home range length of 1.5 km (0.93 mi).[6]
Yellow-blotched map turtles are medium- to small-sized turtles, with males ranging from 3.5 to 4.5 in (9-11.5 cm) in carapace length as adults. Adult females are larger, about 5 to 7.5 in (13–19 cm) in carapace length. The yellow-blotched map turtle has the highest central keel of all map turtles.[citation needed]
This species is listed as threatened under the US Endangered Species Act due to a recent decline. This can be attributed to a low reproductive frequency as compared with most other map turtles. A high level of nest mortality due to fish crow predation and river flooding are also attributed to endangerment. Unexpectedly high occurrences of nesting in shaded areas could possibly be attributed to human disturbances on and near sandbars, which raises mortality rates.[7] Human disturbances are primarily boating activities that are popular in the Pascagoula of Mississippi increasing the female turtle's energetic cost of nesting overall preventing their population to grow.[8]
Also, its habitat suffers from pollution and agricultural changes to water levels, affecting nesting beaches. "Turtle plinking", shooting turtles for casual target practice, kills significant portions of this endangered turtle's population each year.[9]
Since yellow-blotched map turtles are freshwater turtles mainly found in the Pascagoula River of Mississippi, human disturbances like an increase in boats in the area of inhabitance, also leads to many physiological issues due to less time to bask or endangerment of the nest.[10]
^Conant, R. 1975. A Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians of Eastern and Central North America, Second Edition. Houghton Mifflin. Boston. xviii + 429 pp. + 48 plates. ISBN0-395-19977-8 (paperback). (Graptemys flavimaculata, p. 59 + Plate 8 + Map17.)
^Jones, R. L. (1996). "Home Range and Seasonal Movements of the Turtle Graptemys flavimaculata". Journal of Herpetology. 30 (3): 376–385. doi:10.2307/1565175. JSTOR1565175.
^Horne, Brian D.; Brauman, Robert J.; Moore, Megan J. C.; Seigel, Richard A. (December 2003). "Reproductive and Nesting Ecology of the Yellow-Blotched Map Turtle, Graptemys flavimaculata: Implications for Conservation and Management". Copeia. 2003 (4): 729–738. doi:10.1643/HA02-213.1. S2CID86331793.
^Moore, Megan J. C.; Seigel, Richard A. (1 July 2006). "No place to nest or bask: Effects of human disturbance on the nesting and basking habits of yellow-blotched map turtles (Graptemys flavimaculata)". Biological Conservation. 130 (3): 386–393. Bibcode:2006BCons.130..386M. doi:10.1016/j.biocon.2006.01.001.
^Selman, Will; Qualls, Carl; Owen, Jennifer C. (July 2013). "Effects of human disturbance on the behavior and physiology of an imperiled freshwater turtle: Disturbance Impacts on Turtles". The Journal of Wildlife Management. 77 (5): 877–885. doi:10.1002/jwmg.538. JSTOR43188086.
^"Appendices I, II and III". Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. 21 May 2023. Retrieved 22 May 2023.
Smith, H.M., and E.D. Brodie Jr. 1982. Reptiles of North America: A Guide to Field Identification. Golden Press. New York. 240 pp. ISBN0-307-13666-3 (paperback). (Grapemys flavimaculata, pp. 52–53.)
