The Ouachita Map Turtle (Graptemys o. ouachitensis) is believed to occur as a disjunct population in West Virginia; however, the extent and viability of this ...
The Range of a Disjunct Population of Ouachita Map Turtles (Graptemys o. ouachitensis) in West Virginia Aaron C. Gooley, H. James Stanton, and Thomas K. Pauley Marshall University Herpetology Lab
Methods We conducted visual surveys for basking turtles on the Little Kanawha from the mouth to Newark, and from the Elizabeth Locks to Henderson Run, on the Kanawha River from the mouth to Charlestown, and on the Ohio River from Guyandot to Green Bottom Wildlife Management Area, Ravenswood to Letart, Belleville to the Little Kanawha, and St. Marys to Sistersville during the summer of 2010. We searched the rivers from a 14ft john boat during peak basking times and utilized binoculars and a camera with a 30X telephoto lens to identify turtles. When possible, photographs of basking individuals were taken.
Abstract The Ouachita Map Turtle (Graptemys o. ouachitensis) is believed to occur as a disjunct population in West Virginia; however, the extent and viability of this population is not known. Until 2009, there were only two confirmed Ouachita Map Turtles from West Virginia, one captured in the Little Kanawha River in 1953 and a second (a male) captured in the lower Kanawha River during systematic trapping of the Kanawha River in 2000. In the summer of 2009, we observed a female basking on the lower Kanawha River providing further evidence for a population in West Virginia. To investigate the range extent of Ouachita Map Turtles in West Virginia, we conducted visual surveys for basking turtles on the Little Kanawha, Kanawha, and Ohio rivers during the summer of 2010. When possible, photographs of basking individuals were taken. From the 24th of May to the 8th of July we observed 24 instances of basking Ouachita Map Turtles on the Kanawha River downstream of Winfield Locks, 3 on the Ohio River adjacent Green Bottom Wildlife Management area, and 5 on the little Kanawha downstream of Elizabeth. The presence of Ouachita Map Turtles on the Ohio River opens the possibility that the West Virginia population is connected to other western populations and not disjunct as originally thought. Future investigations are needed to determine the Northern and western extent of the West Virginia Population of Ouachita Map Turtles on the Ohio River and its tributaries.
Results
Ouachita Map Turtle (Graptemys o. ouachitensis) Occurrences in West Virginia
From the 24th of May to the 8th of July we observed 24 instances of basking Ouachita Map Turtles on the Kanawha River below Winfield Locks, 3 on the Ohio River adjacent Green Bottom Wildlife Management Area, and 5 on the Little Kanawha below Elizabeth. We failed to detect Ouachita Map Turtles above the Winfield Locks on the Kanawha River and above the Elizabeth Locks on the Little Kanawha River. All but 3 Ouachita Map Turtles were basking on partially-submerged logs which were not attached to the bank above the surface (one was on a rock, one was swimming, and one was on a partiallysubmerged log attached to the shore above the surface).
Conclusions Ouachita Map Turtles were one of the most commonly encountered basking turtles along with softshell turtles (Apalone sp.) and Northern Map Turtles (Graptemys geographica) on the Lower Kanawha River during the course of our study. Watson and Pauley (2006) captured one Ouachita Map Turtle after trapping that section of river extensively, however numerous Midland Painted Turtles (Chrysemys picta marginata), Red Eared Sliders (Trachemys scripta elegans), Common Snapping Turtles (Chelydra s. serpentina), and Stinkpots (Sternotherous odoratus) were captured. Visual searches for basking turtles represents a faster and more efficient method for detecting populations of Ouachita Map Turtles on rivers than trapping.
Introduction The Ouachita Map Turtle (Graptemys o. ouachitensis) is believed to occur as a disjunct population in West Virginia (Green and Pauley 1987); however, the extent and viability of this population is not known. Until 2009, there were only two confirmed Ouachita Map Turtles from West Virginia, one captured in the Little Kanawha River in 1953 (Richmond 1953) and a second (a male) captured in the lower Kanawha River during systematic trapping of the Kanawha River in 2000 (Watson and Pauley 2006). It was not known if these individuals were part of an established population, released pets, or wayward transients. In the summer of 2009, we observed a female basking on the lower Kanawha River providing further evidence for a population in West Virginia. Ouachita Map Turtles are shy and difficult to capture (Green and Pauley 1987) but populations have been successfully detected using visual searches from boats (TempleMiller 2008). They can be differentiated from Northern Map Turtles (Graptemys geographica) by the presence of large postorbital yellow markings, white eyes, and a prominent vertebral keel with spines (Ernst and Lovich 2009) .
We confirmed the presence of Ouachita Map Turtle populations on the lower Kanawha and the lower Little Kanawha River. The presence of Ouachita Map Turtles on the Ohio River raises the possibility that the West Virginia population is connected to other western populations and not disjunct as originally thought. Future investigations are needed to determine the northern and western extent of the West Virginia Population of Ouachita Map Turtles on the Ohio River and its tributaries.
Works Cited
We would like to thank Steve White and Paula Lane for their hospitality during this study. Funding was provided by the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources.
Ernst, C.H. and J.E. Lovich. 2009. Turtles of the United States and Canada, 2nd ed. John Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, MD. pp827. Green, N.B. and T.K. Pauley. 1987. Amphibians and reptiles in West Virginia. University of Pittsburgh Press, Pittsburgh, PA. pp241. Richmond, N.D. 1953. The false map turtle, a new addition to the fauna of West Virginia. Proceedings of the West Virginia Academy of Science 25:35. Temple-Miller, K.G. 2008. Use of radiotelemetry and GIS to distinguish habitat use between Graptemys ouachitensis and G. geographica in the Scioto River. Masters thesis, Ohio University, Athens, OH. Watson, M.B. and T.K. Pauley. 2006. Spatial distribution of turtles along the Great Kanawha River, West Virginia. Proceedings of the West Virginia Academy of Science 78:14-25.
