Actinemys Explained

Actinemys is a small genus of turtles in the family Emydidae.^[1] The genus is endemic to the west coast of North America. The genus contains two species.

Species

The following two species are recognized as being valid.^[1]

• Actinemys marmorata – northwestern pond turtle, northern Pacific pond turtle
• Actinemys pallida – southwestern pond turtle, southern Pacific pond turtle

Nota bene

A binomial authority in parentheses indicates that the species was originally described in a genus other than Actinemys.

Taxonomy

Both species are sometimes included in the genus Emys (sensu lato).^[2] Actinemys pallida, the southwestern pond turtle, has been a recent split from Actinemys marmorata, of which it was previously considered a subspecies.

Further reading

• Agassiz L (1857). Contributions to the Natural History of the United States. Vol I. Boston: Little, Brown and Company. li + 452 pp. (Actinemys, new genus, p. 444).

Notes and References

1. "Actinemys ". The Reptile Database. www.reptile-database.org https://reptile-database.reptarium.cz/search?search=Actinemys+&submit=Search.
2. Turtles of the world, 2011 update: Annotated checklist of taxonomy, synonymy, distribution and conservation status . Chelonian Research Monographs . 5 . 2011-12-31 . Rhodin . Anders G.J. . van Dijk . Peter Paul . Iverson . John B. . Shaffer . H. Bradley . Roger . Bour . https://web.archive.org/web/20120131102839/http://www.iucn-tftsg.org/wp-content/uploads/file/Accounts/crm_5_000_checklist_v4_2011.pdf . 2012-01-31 . CITEREFRhodin2011 . dead . 000.185.