Courtship and Mating Behavior in the Yellow Mud Turtle, Kinosternon flavescens flavescens

Courtship and mating behavior were observed in captive Kinosternon flavescens flavescens. Members of this species have, in part, a specialized and unique pattern that otherwise conforms with previous descriptions of such behavior in kinosternid turtles. The same courtship and mating procedure was also observed in Kinosternon baurii palmarum. Courtship and mating were divided into 3 general phases: tactile; initial mounting; and copulatory. Observations suggest that species of Sternotherus and Kinosternon have each developed their own specialized courtship and mating pattern that may have been derived from a single common origin.