Status: California Species of Special Concern1
- Habitat alteration and destruction is the primary threat to Western Pond Turtle conservation
- Populations have declined by as much as 80% in some regions
Habitat:
- Western Pond Turtles can be found in a variety of fresh water sources, including lakes, ponds, rivers, streams, creeks, reservoirs, marshes, and irrigation ditches
Feeding Behavior/Diet:
- They eat aquatic plants, invertebrates, worms, frog and salamander eggs and larvae, crayfish, carrion, and sometimes frogs and fish
Reproduction:
- Lay their eggs in the spring – typically from March to June
- Females will travel to an upland terrestrial location to nest their clutch of eggs, typically between 1 and 13 in number
- The young remain in the nest until the next spring after hatching. When the time comes to leave, they’ll migrate to aquatic habitat1
1 HELIX Environmental Planning Carson Creek Preserve Long Term Management Plan Rev 6/15/2021
2 Stanford University Conservation Program