Endangered Alabama

The Alabama red bellied turtle has tooth-like extensions on its upper jaw. The males have elongated foreclaws and generally grow to about a foot long (females grow a bit larger). The female turtles lay between 4 and 9 eggs on dry land from May through July. By nesting on dry land the turtle exposes itself to road crossings which do not bode well for the turtle. Pseudemys alabamensis was placed on the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Endangered Species List in 1987 The turtle is also protected under the Nongame Species Regulation by the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. Despite its endangered status, the Alabama red bellied turtle has continued to decline in population size since the 1980's

Little is known about the red bellied turtle, but they are expected to live 50 years or more. The red-belly turtle inhabits the fresh to brackish waters of the Mobile delta in Mobile and Baldwin Counties, but I have personally seen a male red bellied in Lake Oak Ridge in Enterprise, AL which is quite a distance from Mobile. To prevent extinction of this turtle and the increasing number of endangered species that live in the United States, land owners need to be willing to work with the conservation agencies instead of fearing them. There are numerous agreements that allow the landowner to still retain ownership and even develop their land that contains endangered wildlife. One such program is the Safe Harbor Agreement. This agreement allows the land owner to do something beneficial for the residing endangered species in exchange for no additional limitations on their land by the government. This agreement even allows for development on the property not pertaining to the species. Remember, it is the you, the landowners, who control the fate of the wildlife in America.

By: Gavin Leens

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