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Spiny Softshell vs. Ornate Box Turtle

The shell: Spiny Softshell — soft, flat and leathery; Ornate Box Turtle — hard, with plates. The shell pattern: Spiny Softshell — dark spots or rings on a leathery shell; Ornate Box Turtle — yellow lines fanning out from the centre of each plate. The head marks: Spiny Softshell — several yellow stripes, no patch; Ornate Box Turtle — yellow or orange spots.

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Spiny Softshell

Apalone spinifera

Ornate Box Turtle

Terrapene ornata
Spiny Softshell vs. Ornate Box Turtle: comparison sheet with the differences marked

Photographs via iNaturalist under Creative Commons licences; the photographers are credited on the sheet.

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