Bog Turtle (Glyptemys muhlenbergii)
Learn about The Nature Conservancy's work to save North America's smallest turtle.
Meet the Bog Turtle
The bog turtle is North America’s smallest turtle, growing only to 4.5 inches in length. Easily recognized by the orange patch on either side of its head, the bog turtle favors open, groundwater-fed wet meadows and bogs dominated by tussock sedge and grasses.
Bog turtles thrive in mountain bogs, or isolated wetlands with acidic, wet soil, thick moss and deep layers of mud. These deep mucky soils, fed by groundwater, provide protection from predators and other elements. Short clumps of vegetation let in plenty of sunlight for incubating eggs and basking. If any of these conditions change, a bog turtle population can decline and may eventually disappear from the area.
