Sternotherus peltifer
Smith and Glass, 1947
Stripe-necked Musk Turtle
GNRUnrankedGlobal Rank
Data deficientIUCN
Identity
Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.1226017
Element CodeARAAE02050
Record TypeSPECIES
ClassificationSpecies
Classification StatusStandard
Name CategoryVertebrate Animal
IUCNData deficient
Endemicendemic to a single nation
KingdomAnimalia
PhylumCraniata
ClassChelonia
OrderTestudines
FamilyKinosternidae
GenusSternotherus
SynonymsSternotherus minor peltiferSmith and Glass, 1947
Concept ReferenceScott, P. A., T. C. Glenn, and L. J. Rissler. 2018. Resolving taxonomic turbulence and uncovering cryptic diversity in the musk turtles (Sternotherus) using robust demographic modeling. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 120:1-15. Advance online publication 2017.
Taxonomic CommentsScott et al. (2018) elevated S. m. minor and S. m. peltifer and recognized a new species, S. intermedius. Bourque (2015) suggested the elevation of this taxon to species status based on the work of Iverson et al. (2013) and Bourque and Schubert (2015). Additionally, Guyer (2015) recommended elevating this taxon based on the work of Walker et al. (1995).
Conservation Status
Range Extent20,000-200,000 square km (about 8000-80,000 square miles)
Range Extent CommentsThis species occurs in the greater Mobile River Basin of Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee, and Georgia, Upper Tennessee River drainages of Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama, Virginia and North Carolina, Pearl River drainage of Louisiana and Mississippi and Pascagoula River drainages of Mississippi and Alabama, USA (Scott et al. 2018). The presumed historical range is 152,672 sq. km (TTWG 2021).
Scott et al. (2018) note that they only included a single individual of S. peltifer from the Tennessee River drainage; thus, further work is needed to determine if individuals from this region should be attributed to S. peltifer, given the hypothesized isolation between animals in the Tennessee and greater Mobile River systems (Stejneger 1923).
Other Nations (1)
United StatesNNR
| Province | Rank | Native |
|---|
| Alabama | SNR | Yes |
| Tennessee | S5 | Yes |
| Louisiana | S1 | Yes |
| Virginia | S2 | Yes |
| Mississippi | SNR | Yes |
| Georgia | SU | Yes |
| North Carolina | S1 | Yes |
References (10)
- Bourque, J. R. 2015. New mud turtles (Kinosternidae, <i>Kinosternon</i>) from the middle–late Miocene of the United States. Journal of Paleontology 89(5):821-844.
- Bourque, J. R., and B. W. Schubert. 2015. Fossil musk turtles (Kinosternidae, Sternotherus) from the late Miocene–early Pliocene (Hemphillian) of Tennessee and Florida. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 35(1):1-19
- Crother, B. I. (editor). 2017. Scientific and standard English names of amphibians and reptiles of North America north of Mexico, with comments regarding confidence in our understanding. 8th edition. SSAR Herpetological Circular 43:1-104. [Updates in SSAR North American Species Names Database at: https://ssarherps.org/cndb]
- Guyer, C., M. A. Bailey, and R. H. Mount. 2015. Turtles of Alabama. Vol. 5. Gosse Nature Guides, First Edition. University of Alabama Press. 288 pp.
- Iverson, J.B. 1977. Geographic variation in the musk turtle, <i>Sternotherus minor</i>. Copeia:502-517.
- Iverson, J.B., M. Le, and C. Ingram. 2013. Molecular phylogenetics of the mud and musk turtle family Kinosternidae. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 69(3):929-939.
- Nicholson, K. E. (ed.). 2025. Scientific and Standard English Names of Amphibians and Reptiles of North America North of Mexico, with Comments Regarding Confidence in Our Understanding. Ninth Edition. Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles. 87 pp. Online database available at: https://cnah.org/SSARnames.aspx
- Scott, P. A., T. C. Glenn, and L. J. Rissler. 2018. Resolving taxonomic turbulence and uncovering cryptic diversity in the musk turtles (<i>Sternotherus</i>) using robust demographic modeling. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 120:1-15. Advance online publication 2017.
- Turtle Taxonomy Working Group [TTWG: Rhodin, A.G.J., Iverson, J.B., Fritz, U., Gallego-García, N., Georges, A., Shaffer, H.B., and van Dijk, P.P.]. 2025. Turtles of the World: Annotated Checklist and Atlas of Taxonomy, Synonymy, Distribution, and Conservation Status (10th Ed.). In: Rhodin, A.G.J., Iverson, J.B., van Dijk, P.P., Stanford, C.B., Goode, E.V., Buhlmann, K.A., and Mittermeier, R.A. (Eds.). Conservation Biology of Freshwater Turtles and Tortoises: A Compilation Project of the IUCN SSC Tortoise and Freshwater Turtle Specialist Group. Chelonian Research Monographs 10:1–575. doi:10.3854/crm.10.checklist.atlas.v10.2025.
- Walker, D., V. J. Burke, I. Barak, and J. C. Avise. 1995. A comparison of mtDNA restriction sites vs. control region sequences in phylogeographic assessment of the musk turtle (<i>Sternotherus minor</i>). Molecular Ecology 4:365-373.