1904 Key to Species

Below is a sampling of DBT descriptions from William Perry Hay’s 1904 Bureau of Fisheries “A Revision of Malaclemmys, A Genus of Turtles:” Key to th species and subspecies of the genus Malaclemmys a. Carinae of vertebral plates never tuberculate. Atlantic coast species. b. Head large to medium siz; sides of carapace subparallel; southern form ranging north about Cape Hatteras……….M. centrata bb. Head medium to small; carapace widest posteriorly; northern form ranging from about Cape Hatteras to Buzzards Bay….. M. centrata concentrica aa. Cainae of vertebral plates more or less tuberculate, at least in the young. Gulf coast species. c. Each plate of the carapace with a large central yellow or orange blotch …… M. macrospilota cc. Plates of carapace without yellow blotch. d. Carapace uniform black or dark brown, top of head and upper lip dark…..M. pileata. dd. Carapace uniform light brown or with traces of concentric markings; upper lip and top of head nearly always white ….M. littoralis