Smooth Softshell Apalone mutica - Special Concern

Female - Wabasha Co.
Description: Females 6½ - 14 inches, males 4½ - 7 inches. Smooth Softshell Turtles have a soft, flat, flexible upper shell (carapace). They are often described as looking like chocolate chip pancakes, even being called "pancake turtles" by some people. The front edge of the upper shell is smooth giving the turtle its name. The nostrils are smooth and round.

Similar Species: Spiny Softshell Turtles are similar in appearance, but have spines and bumps on the front edge of the upper shell, and have D-shaped nostrils with a small ridge in them.

Comments: Restricted to sandy areas along large rivers.

Distribution Map
Distribution of the Smooth Softshell (Apalone mutica)

This map is generated from data provided by the Bell Museum of Natural History and HerpMapper.org. Please help us keep it up-to-date by submitting your amphibian and reptile observations.

Phenology of Smooth Softshell (Apalone mutica)
Photographs