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Carnegie Museum of Natural History

One of the Four Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh

Turtle Bottoms

by Patrick McShea

Spotted turtles in a display case, one is on its back and the other is on its belly
Spotted turtles

Upside down is an unnatural state. Yet within the museum’s display of Pennsylvania turtles, four of 14 taxidermy mounts are bottom side up. With strained necks and legs positioned in frozen flail, the four reptiles, each representing a different
turtle species, appear in perpetual effort to right themselves.

taxidermy Stinkpot turtles
Stinkpot turtles

Their awkward stance reveals clever exhibit design. A turtle’s bottom shell, or plastron, differs drastically from its upper shell, or carapace, in size, shape, color pattern, and surface texture. The overturned turtles instantly convey this visual information to attentive viewers.

Beneath the simulated surface of a clear shallow pool, a trio of eastern spiny softshell turtles shows the contrast between the species’ carapace and plastron.

At Carnegie Museum of Natural History, displays of Pennsylvania’s amphibians and reptiles can be found on the Daniel G. and Carole L. Kamin T. rex Overlook.

For addition species information visit: http://www.fishandboat.com/Resource/AmphibiansandReptiles/Pages/default.aspx

Common snapping turtle, underside view.

 

Patrick McShea works in the Education and Visitor Experience department of Carnegie Museum of Natural History. Museum employees are encouraged to blog about their unique experiences of working at the museum.

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Carnegie Museum of Natural History Blog Citation Information

Blog author: McShea, Patrick
Publication date: July 14, 2017

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