![\"05-10-1](\"http:\/\/www.turtlejournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2001\/05\/05-10-1-480.jpg\" "\\"05-10-1")
<\/a><\/p>\nFemale Terrapin #1006 About to be Netted<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n Turtle 1006 paddled through about 90 minutes before ebb tide.\u00c2\u00a0 She\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a mature female whom we last saw just five days ago as she ran the murky rapids on Cinquo de Mayo.\u00c2\u00a0 Since then she\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s dropped 18 grams in weight.<\/p>\n Mature Male #1061 (Left), Prepubescent Female #1063 (Right)<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n The next two captures, #1061 and #1063, proved extremely interesting and instructive.\u00c2\u00a0 Terrapin 1061 is a sexually mature 7-year-old male; Terrapin 1063 is a pre-pubescent 5-year-old female.\u00c2\u00a0 They were both the identical length, 11.2 centimeters, and nearly the same weight, 250 grams.\u00c2\u00a0 And they pose one of the more difficult challenges for the amateur field researcher: distinguishing gender differences between a mature male and a young female before puberty, that is, before obvious size dimorphism kicks in.<\/p>\n From the topside, you can detect the rounder, plumper form of the juvenile female (#1063 on the right) than the shallower-shelled male (#1061 on the left).<\/p>\n Prepubescent Female #1063 (Left), Mature Male #1061 (Right)<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n Looking at the bottom, the thicker male tail of #1061 on the right can be compared with the thinner female tail of #1063 on the left.\u00c2\u00a0 Note also the relatively longer plastron length of the female on the left (87.5% of carapace length) to the male plastron on the right (less than 82% of carapace length).<\/p>\n Captured together, they provide a great visual lesson for terrapin field researchers.<\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n