Long-Term Nest-Site Fidelity in the Mississippi Map Turtle, Graptemys pseudogeographica kohnii

Abstract. Nest-site fidelity has been well-documented in turtles, but it is not known how long this behavior can persist. Nesting areas used by 153 individually marked Mississippi map turtles (Graptemys pseudogeographica kohnii) during 2001–2003 were compared with those used in 2019. Only 2 of 100 turtles collected in 2019 were recaptures, but these turtles returned significantly closer to their original capture location than by chance. The 17-yr interval between successive captures represents the longest record of nest-site fidelity in a freshwater turtle.

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