Welcome
to the Maine Reptile checklist.
Maine is home to 19 species in 16 genera in 6 families in 3 orders.
Below is a working checklist
of reptiles that live in Maine or in the adjacent. For more information about a particular species, click on the link under the heading “common name”, and you will be taken to a page for the order that includes that species. Otherwise, to determine which order the reptile that you are trying to identify belongs to, refer to the tabular key at the bottom of this page.
How to contribute to this page.
Please e-mail corrections and updates to info@vfthomas.com or send them to the address at the top of this page. Photographs are encouraged. Thank you.
A little work by each of us will save a lot of work for all of us.
| Order | Family | Genus | Specific Epithet | Authority | Common Name | Source (full citation given after this table) |
| Testudines | Chelydridae | Chelydra | serpentina | (L.) | snapping turtle | Hunter et al. (1999); pp. 121–125, 222. |
| Testudines | Kinosternidae | Sternotherus | odoratus | (Latreille in Sonnini and Latreille) | common musk turtle | Hunter et al. (1999); pp. 126–129, 222. |
| Testudines | Emydidae | Chrysemys | picta | (Schneider) | eastern painted turtle | Hunter et al. (1999); pp. 130–133, 223. |
| Testudines | Emydidae | Clemmys | guttata | (Schneider) | spotted turtle | Hunter et al. (1999); pp. 134–137, 223. |
| Testudines | Emydidae | Clemmys | insculpta | (LeConte) | wood turtle | Hunter et al. (1999); pp. 138–143, 224. |
| Testudines | Emydidae | Emydoidea | blandingii | (Holbrook) | Blanding’s turtle | Hunter et al. (1999); pp. 144–147, 224. |
| Testudines | Emydidae | Terrapene | carolina | (L.) | eastern box turtle | Hunter et al. (1999); pp. 148–151, 225. |
| Testudines | Cheloniidae | Caretta | caretta | (L.) | loggerhead | Hunter et al. (1999); pp. 154–156. |
| Testudines | Cheloniidae | Lepidochelys | kempii | (Garman) | Atlantic Ridley | Hunter et al. (1999); pp. 156–158. |
| Testudines | Dermochelyidae | Dermochelys | coriacea | (Vandelli) | leatherback | Hunter et al. (1999); pp. 152–154. |
| Serpentes | Colubridae | Coluber | consrictor | L. | eastern racer | Hunter et al. (1999); pp. 161–164, 225. |
| Serpentes | Colubridae | Diadophis | punctatus | (L.) | ring-necked snake | Hunter et al. (1999); pp. 165–167, 226. |
| Serpentes | Colubridae | Lampropeltis | triangulum | (Lacépède) | milk snake | Hunter et al. (1999); pp. 168–170; 226. |
| Serpentes | Colubridae | Opheodrys | vernalis | (Harlan) | smooth green snake | Hunter et al. (1999) as Liochloophis vernalis; pp. 171–173, 227. |
| Serpentes | Colubridae | Nerodia | sipedon | (L.) | northern water snake | Hunter et al. (1999); pp. 174–177, 227. |
| Serpentes | Colubridae | Storeria | dekayi | (Holbrook) | brown snake | Hunter et al. (1999); pp. 178–180, 228. |
| Serpentes | Colubridae | Storeria | occipitomaculata | (Storer) | redbelly snake | Hunter et al. (1999); pp. 181–183, 228. |
| Serpentes | Colubridae | Thamnophis | saurita | (L.) | ribbon snake | Hunter et al. (1999) as Thamnophis sauritus; pp. 184–187, 229. |
| Serpentes | Colubridae | Thamnophis | sirtalis | (L.) | common garter snake | Hunter et al. (1999); pp. 188–191, 229. |
Key to the orders of reptiles that live in Maine
| legs | |
| Serpentes (snakes) |
absent |
| Testudines (turtles) |
present (4) |