Winner, 2011 Book Award, The Wildlife Society2009 Outstanding Academic Title, Choice Ernst and Lovich’s thoroughly revised edition of this classic reference provides the most updated information ever assembled on the natural histories of North American turtles. From diminutive mud turtles to giant alligator snappers, two of North America’s most prominent experts describe the turtles that live in the fresh, brackish, and marine waters north of Mexico. Incorporating the explosion of new scientific information published on turtles over the past fifteen years—including the identification of four new species—Ernst and Lovich supply comprehensive coverage of all fifty-eight species, with discussions of conservation status and recovery efforts. Each species account contains information on identification, genetics, fossil record, distribution, geographic variation, habitat, behavior, reproduction, biology, growth and longevity, food habits, populations, predators, and conservation status. The book includes range maps for freshwater and terrestrial species, a glossary of scientific names, an extensive bibliography for further research, and an index to scientific and common names. Logically organized and richly illustrated—with more than two hundred color photographs and fifty-two maps—Turtles of the United States and Canada remains the standard for libraries, museums, nature centers, field biologists, and professional and amateur herpetologists alike.

Covering all facets of the biology of a little-known genus, Peter V. Lindeman’s lavishly illustrated Map Turtle and Sawback Atlas is both a scientific treatise and an engaging introduction to a striking group of turtles. Map turtles and sawbacks, found in and along rivers from Texas to Florida and north to the Great Lakes, fascinate ecologists and evolutionary biologists. Over a short geologic time span, these turtles achieved exceptional biological diversification. Their diets are also exceptionally diverse, and a significant difference in size distinguishes males from females. Adult males are typically half or less the shell length of adult females, making map turtles and sawbacks the champions of sexual dimorphism among not only turtles but all four-legged vertebrates. Aesthetics also draw biologists and hobbyists to map turtles and sawbacks. While the male Sabine map turtle may look to some like a “pencil-necked geek,” as the author puts it, markings on the shell, limbs, head, and neck make map turtles among the most attractive turtles on earth. Sawbacks feature a striking ridge down their shell. Few turtles show themselves off to such advantage. Photographs included here of Graptemys basking poses reveal to what improbable heights these turtles can scale, the spread-eagle sunning stances they adopt, the stacking of individuals on a crowded site, and the heads that warily watch the world above the waterline. In lively prose, Lindeman details the habitat, diet, reproduction and life history, natural history, and population abundance of each species. A section on conservation status summarizes official state, federal, and international designations for each species, along with efforts toward population management and recovery as well as habitat preservation. The author also outlines promising avenues for future research, ranging from the effects of global climate change on populations to strategies for combating expansion of the pet trade.

From before the time she hatches until she returns to the same beach to lay eggs of her own, a sea turtle is helped to escape from danger many times by different human hands.