Mexican Red-Cheek Muddy

cdmay

Well-Known Member
10 Year Member!
Joined
Feb 1, 2008
Messages
1,945
Location (City and/or State)
Somewhere in Florida
The red-cheek mud turtle, Kinosternon scorpioides cruentatum, occurs from eastern Mexico down through the Yucatan Peninsula and south to about Honduras. Most that are being maintained in the United States in recent years (decades) are reportedly from Guatemalan imports.
I am currently maintaining a particular female that was supposedly wild caught in, or near Vera Cruz, Mexico.
No way to confirm this of course, but I tend to believe the source.
Anyway, these are some images I took right after I acquired her early this year.
23h17d5.jpg

28hgd4h.jpg

28whg9.jpg


Her head had some really nice red color to it and the ground color of her skin was a rather steely gray.
Notice that she had a spot or two of shell rot on the rear lobe of her plastron right on the anal scute/femoral scute seam. I treated this accordingly...

w8rywo.jpg


In the intervening months she has proved to be a typically hardy tropical mud turtle although unlike captive hatched and raised red-cheeks, she has remained rather shy. In addition, she is very flighty when held and instead of remaining passive like my others, she tends to be a bit spastic. Still, a very nice animal.

She's had a good summer of growth and her color has become really beautiful too.

2mxn01u.jpg

2dj1ees.jpg


I also like the yellow color around her jaws...a pretty female!

11ahow2.jpg


You can see from this plastron photo (just taken) that the shell rot has healed nicely and new growth has occurred.

2n72muq.jpg


Although there are some populations of red-cheeks that are clearly different from what most of us here in the U.S. are used to seeing, this female seems only slightly so to me. She does appear to be of a smaller and slighter build than my other cruentatum, but this could of course mean nothing.
Regardless, she is one of my favorites.
 

Moozillion

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10 Year Member!
Platinum Tortoise Club
Joined
Apr 26, 2012
Messages
10,744
Location (City and/or State)
Louisiana, USA
The red-cheek mud turtle, Kinosternon scorpioides cruentatum, occurs from eastern Mexico down through the Yucatan Peninsula and south to about Honduras. Most that are being maintained in the United States in recent years (decades) are reportedly from Guatemalan imports.
I am currently maintaining a particular female that was supposedly wild caught in, or near Vera Cruz, Mexico.
No way to confirm this of course, but I tend to believe the source.
Anyway, these are some images I took right after I acquired her early this year.
23h17d5.jpg

28hgd4h.jpg

28whg9.jpg


Her head had some really nice red color to it and the ground color of her skin was a rather steely gray.
Notice that she had a spot or two of shell rot on the rear lobe of her plastron right on the anal scute/femoral scute seam. I treated this accordingly...

w8rywo.jpg


In the intervening months she has proved to be a typically hardy tropical mud turtle although unlike captive hatched and raised red-cheeks, she has remained rather shy. In addition, she is very flighty when held and instead of remaining passive like my others, she tends to be a bit spastic. Still, a very nice animal.

She's had a good summer of growth and her color has become really beautiful too.

2mxn01u.jpg

2dj1ees.jpg


I also like the yellow color around her jaws...a pretty female!

11ahow2.jpg


You can see from this plastron photo (just taken) that the shell rot has healed nicely and new growth has occurred.

2n72muq.jpg


Although there are some populations of red-cheeks that are clearly different from what most of us here in the U.S. are used to seeing, this female seems only slightly so to me. She does appear to be of a smaller and slighter build than my other cruentatum, but this could of course mean nothing.
Regardless, she is one of my favorites.

A real BEAUTY!!!! [emoji7]
 

TammyJ

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5 Year Member
Joined
Jun 21, 2016
Messages
7,119
Location (City and/or State)
Jamaica
Wow! She is gorgeous! I love the variety among the mud turtles. Thanks.
 

Anthony P

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10 Year Member!
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Jan 16, 2012
Messages
2,162
Location (City and/or State)
Swamps, bogs, and vernal pools
Good lord! She is gorgeous! Very grateful that you shared the photos.

She looks young. I'd love to get updates on where she tops out, size-wise.

Good luck with her and thanks for sharing.
 
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