Living with Wildlife

For information on how to live with wildlife, visit these species pages:

Bats | Beaver | Birds | Black Bears | Cougars | Coyotes | Deer and Elk | Frogs | Nutria | Osprey | Owls | Raccoons | Snakes | Tree Squirrels | Turkeys | Turtles | Wolves | Young Wildlife

Western Pond Turtle - Photo by Rick Swart, ODFW-

Turtles

• NEW: Guidance for Conserving Oregon’s Native Turtles including Best Management Practices (March 2015) (pdf)
• Pet turtles: A common source of salmonella (pdf)
• Nonnative turtles legal to possess in Oregon (pdf)

Native turtles

Oregon has two native species of turtles: the western pond turtle and the western painted turtle. Both are highlighted in the Oregon Conservation Strategy as species in need of help—that is, they have low or declining populations.

• Oregon's native species
• Native turtle ID flyer (pdf)
• Oregon's native turtles (video)

Non-native turtles

Non-native turtles compete with native turtles for basking sites and are known to introduce disease that has resulted in localized die-offs of native turtle populations. The two species Oregon biologists are concerned about are snapping turtles and red-eared sliders. Never buy or release either of these turtles in the wild. Call your local ODFW office if you have one of these species or if you see one.

• Invasive species
• Non-native turtle ID flyer (pdf)

Have you seen a turtle in Oregon?