This list of reptiles of Mexico is made up of 995 species of reptiles registered in Mexico. Listing is based on The Reptile Database. The reptiles of Mexico are grouped into 3 orders and 35 families, and include snakes, lizards, crocodilians and turtles.
Turtles (Testudines) Mexico has a total of 54 species of turtle, grouped into 7 families and 20 genera. Among them, there are 6 marine species, almost all of them in danger of extinction.
Cheloniidae
Order: Testudines ·
Family: Cheloniidae
Sea turtles (Cheloniidae) are a family of large turtles found in all tropical seas and some subtropical and temperate seas. Sea turtles developed from land turtles about 120 million years ago and are well adapted to life in the sea. They feed mainly on jellyfish, crustaceans and squid. There are 5 or 6 species in the world, of which at least 5 are currently in danger of extinction.
Caretta caretta (Linnaeus, 1758) EN
Chelonia mydas (Linnaeus, 1758) EN
Eretmochelys imbricata (Linnaeus, 1766) CR
Lepidochelys kempii Garman, 1880 CR
Lepidochelys olivacea (Eschscholtz, 1829) VU
Dermochelyidae
Order: Testudines ·
Family: Dermochelyidae
The leatherback sea turtle (Dermochelys coriacea) is the largest of all existing turtles and can reach a length of 2 meters and a weight of more than 600 kg. It is found in all tropical or subtropical seas. Unlike most sea turtles, leatherbacks are often found in the colder waters of temperate zones. It is the only extant species of the Dermochelyidae family and is considered critically endangered. All other species in this family are only known as fossils.
Dermochelys coriacea (Vandelli, 1761) CR
Chelydridae
Order: Testudines ·
Family: Chelydridae
Chelydrids (Chelydridae) are a family of freshwater turtles that is made up of seven extinct genera and two extant genera, both native to the American continent. The existing genera are the snapping turtles (Chelydra) with three species, and the alligator turtles (Macrochelys) with a single species. Of the total of four existing species, 2 occur in Mexico.
Chelydra rossignonii (Bocourt, 1868) VU
Chelydra serpentina (Linnaeus, 1758)
Dermatemydidae
Order: Testudines ·
Family: Dermatemydidae
The white turtle is the only existing species in the Dermatemydidae family. It is a nocturnal, aquatic turtle that lives in large rivers and lakes in Central America, from southern Mexico to northern Honduras. It is one of the most exploited turtles in the world and is classified as a critically endangered species by the IUCN. It is quite large and can weigh around 20 kg. Its flattened shell can reach a length of 65 cm and is generally gray or almost black in color. Its plastron is normally cream colored.
Dermatemys mawii Gray, 1847 CR
Emydidae
Order: Testudines ·
Family: Emydidae
The emydids (Emydidae) are a family of carnivorous aquatic and semi-aquatic turtles. They live most of the time in ponds, reservoirs and rivers, coming to land when they have to find suitable places to lay their eggs. This family is made up of 10 genera that contain more than 50 species. 18 species occur in Mexico.
Actinemys marmorata (Baird & Girard, 1852) VU
Chrysemys picta (Schneider, 1783) Deirochelys reticularia (Latreille, 1801) Pseudemys concinna (Le Conte, 1830) Pseudemys gorzugi Ward, 1984 Terrapene carolina (Linnaeus, 1758) Terrapene coahuila Schmidt & Owens, 1944 EN Terrapene mexicana (Gray, 1849) Terrapene nelsoni Stejneger, 1925 Terrapene ornata (Agassiz, 1857) NT Trachemys gaigeae (Hartweg, 1939) Trachemys grayi (Bocourt, 1868) Trachemys nebulosa (Van Denburgh, 1895) Trachemys ornata (Gray, 1831) VU Trachemys scripta (Thunberg in Schoepff, 1792) Trachemys taylori (Legler, 1960) Trachemys venusta (Gray, 1855) Trachemys yaquia (Legler & Webb, 1970)
Geoemydidae
Orden: Testudines · Familia: Geoemydidae
Rhinoclemmys areolata (Duméril & Bibron, 1851) NT
Rhinoclemmys pulcherrima (Gray, 1855) NT
Rhinoclemmys rubida (Cope, 1870)
Kinosternidae
Order: Testudines ·
Family: Kinosternidae
Chinosternids (Kinosternidae), or mud turtles, are a family of turtles native to the Americas. They are mostly small turtles that inhabit bodies of water with soft, muddy bottoms with an abundance of vegetation. All members of the family are carnivores and feed on crustaceans, aquatic insects, mollusks, annelids, amphibians, small fish and sometimes carrion. The Kinosternidae family has a total of 4 genera and 25 species. 18 species occur in Mexico.
