Class: Reptilia Order: Testudines Family: Trionychidae Genus: Apalone Species: spinifera
The Spiny softshell turtle is one of North American’s largest freshwater turtles. Unlike other native Illinois turtles, it has a distinctive snout and a flat carapace that may feel like sandpaper in males and smooth in females. Also, males typically are yellow-green while females are browner in color. Females also have a much smaller tail than males.
Males have dark eyelike spots (ocelli) on their shell with a concentration of them toward the center, but this characteristic varies greatly in individuals. Females also have the ocelli until they get close to sexual maturity, and the spots begin break up to produce a camouflaged appearance. Males’ tails are also longer and thicker than those of females.
The Spiny Softshell Turtle prefers habitats with soft, sandy or muddy bottoms in freshwater environments. You’ll typically find them in large rivers and streams with moderate to fast currents or lakes and ponds that have sandy shorelines. They prefer backwaters and oxbows where they can burrow into sand or mud that also have areas with open basking spots like sandbars or logs.
Their diet in the wild will consist of plant materials, insects, crayfish and small fish while in captivity they will eat a commercial turtle diet and fish.
Help Feed Our Spiny Softshell TurtleEven though they are often seen basking on logs, the spiny softshell turtle likes to use its sharp claws for digging to hind under rocks or sand. If frightened, the turtle’s claws can leave a rather large wound and frequently bites. They are also known to bury under the rocks or sand to wait for unsuspecting prey.
They avoid rocky or heavily vegetated bottoms because they rely on digging into sand or mud for hiding and ambushing prey. These turtles also need clean, well-oxygenated water since they spend long periods submerged and even use specialized skin respiration underwater.
Softshell turtles belong to one of the oldest turtle families, with fossils dating back over 100 million years. Their unique shell design is a survival adaptation that has stood the test of time.
Unlike most hard-shelled turtles, spiny soft shells are incredibly fast swimmers. Their flattened, flexible shell and fully webbed feet make them one of the quickest turtles in North America, allowing them to escape predators with ease.
