The Florida Suwannee Cooter
Pseudemys suwanniensis
Photo credit: C. Munro USFWS

The Endangered Reptiles of Florida

The Turtles of Florida

Endangered or Threatened Florida Sea Turtles

Endangered or Threatened Florida Freshwater Turtles

The Suwannee Cooter
Pseudemys suwanniensis

In the African languages of Bambara and Malink,

the word for Turtle is Kuta,

from which the word Cooter is derived.

This freshwater Turtle has bright yellow markings

and can grow up to sixteen inches in length.

It is on the Species of Special Concern list

and is protected in Florida.

An unusual trait of the Cooter, is in their manner

of placement on logs in the water, stacking themselves

on top of each other like pancakes on a plate.

A Cooter can frequently be observed sunning

itself on the same log as an Alligator, seemingly

at peace with one another.

The Cooter is safe from becoming a Gator

meal unless it is young, in which case,

it may be in serious trouble.

Places to learn more:

Florida Museum of Natural History

Northwest Florida Waterways and Wildlife

Florida Naturalist Program

Suwannee Cooter

Peter May

Turtles of Lake Woodruff

University of Florida

Turtles and Aquatic Plants

USFWS

Suwannee River Wildlife

Zip Code Zoo

Suwannee Cooter

Walking with the Alligators

Write to Gator Woman

gatorwoman3 at centurylink.net