Soft-shell Turtles (Apalone spinifera)
Check out the IDNR’s Wild About Illinois Turtles! website to learn about the spiny softshell turtle (Apalone spinifera) and the smooth softshell turtle (Apalone mutica). The smooth softshell turtle is listed as endangered in Illinois.
Photo: Dr. E. O. Moll
The Prairie Research Institute’s Illinois Natural History Survey provides species distribution maps and more natural history information about the spiny softshell turtle and the smooth softshell turtle.
Photo: Dr. E. O. Moll
