Turtle "Moms"

Here's something I've heard frequently in turtle hotspots where a large turtle is with a small one: "Look at the Mother Turtle and her babies!". Depending on the situation, I'll sometimes mention:

  • Turtle moms lay their eggs and leave. It's highly unlikely that they know who their children are, making it highly unlikely they protect/guide them.
  • In many cases, the turtles aren't even the same species. Our Northern Red-bellied Cooters tend to be larger than most of their contemporaries, and thus get interpreted as parents to the smaller species.
Both of the pictures below are cases where Northern Red-bellied Cooters are with Eastern Painted Turtles. While we can't rule out that turtles might have some tenuous social relationship with other turtles living nearby, you're probably not seeing parent-child relationships out there.

March 6, 2023 at the Raritan Water Power Canal
Photo 269673787, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

March 6, 2023 at the Raritan Water Power Canal


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