Turtles Near Me › Alabama

Turtles in Alabama

The quickest way to know which turtles live in Alabama is to see what people are actually finding. The map below shows recent, verified turtles sightings across Alabama, and the list beneath it is the turtles recorded most often there lately. Spring and early summer are the best time to find them basking or crossing roads to nest. If you help one across, send it the way it was already heading and never move it somewhere new.

Recent research-grade sightings from the iNaturalist community, filtered to turtles across Alabama.

Turtles seen most often in Alabama

Ranked by recent research-grade observations. Tap any species Huck has catalogued for how to identify it, its habitat, and its safety notes.

Pond Slider
Trachemys scripta
6,374 observations
Common Box Turtle
Terrapene carolina
6,062 observations
Common Snapping Turtle
Chelydra serpentina
1,657 observations
River Cooter
Pseudemys concinna
1,264 observations
Gopher Tortoise
Gopherus polyphemus
1,131 observations
Eastern Musk Turtle
Sternotherus odoratus
839 observations
Florida Softshell Turtle
Apalone ferox
735 observations
Stripe-necked Musk Turtle
Sternotherus peltifer
520 observations
Eastern Mud Turtle
Kinosternon subrubrum
441 observations
Intermediate Musk Turtle
Sternotherus intermedius
341 observations · iNaturalist
Northern Map Turtle
Graptemys geographica
295 observations
Alabama Map Turtle
Graptemys pulchra
287 observations · iNaturalist
Coastal Plain Cooter
Pseudemys floridana
225 observations
Black-knobbed Map Turtle
Graptemys nigrinoda
204 observations · iNaturalist
Loggerhead Sea Turtle
Caretta caretta
174 observations
Painted Turtle
Chrysemys picta
152 observations
Green Sea Turtle
Chelonia mydas
127 observations
Escambia Map Turtle
Graptemys ernsti
126 observations · iNaturalist
Alligator Snapping Turtle
Macrochelys temminckii
118 observations
Chicken Turtle
Deirochelys reticularia
102 observations

Built from recent research-grade iNaturalist observations. Identifications are community-sourced and the ranking reflects where people record wildlife, so a species seen often here is not necessarily common everywhere in Alabama. Treat this as a live snapshot of what people are finding, not a formal checklist.

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More wildlife in Alabama

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Looking more widely? See turtles near you anywhere in the country.

Common questions

What turtles live in Alabama?

Commonly recorded turtles in Alabama include Pond Slider, Common Box Turtle, Common Snapping Turtle, River Cooter, Gopher Tortoise, based on recent research-grade iNaturalist observations. The full list below is ranked by how often each has been seen lately.

When is the best time to see turtles in Alabama?

Spring and early summer are the best time to find them basking or crossing roads to nest. Recent verified sightings across Alabama are the most reliable guide to what is active right now.

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