Emys blandingii
Silhouette: PhyloPic
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~60%
Blanding's turtle (Emydoidea blandingii) is a species of semi-aquatic turtle of the family Emydidae. This species is native to central and eastern parts of Canada and the United States. It is considered to be an endangered species throughout much of its range. Blanding's turtle is of interest in longevity research, as it shows few or no common signs of aging and is physically active and capable of reproduction into eight or nine decades of life.
There are differences of opinion as to the genus for this species; both Emys and Emydoidea occur in published sources in 2009, 2010, and 2011. Both the specific name, blandingii, and the common name, Blanding's turtle, are in honor of American naturalist Dr. William Blanding (1773–1857). The Blanding’s turtle is also known as “the turtle with the sun under its chin,” a name that comes from Indigenous oral traditions. In one Indigenous creation story, the turtle is said to have rescued the sun and returned it to the sky by carrying it in its mouth. This left the turtle with the permanent glow of the sun on its neck and chin.
Blanding's turtle is a medium-sized turtle with an average straight... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Point Pelee National Park | 🇨🇦 Canada |
More parks will be added in future updates.
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ecomuseum Zoo | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 2 | Toronto Zoo | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 3 | Squam Lakes Natural Science Center | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Brookfield Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | Toledo Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 6 | Detroit Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 7 | Zoo Knoxville | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 8 | Virginia Zoological Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 9 | Maine Wildlife Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 10 | Riverview Park & Zoo | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 11 | Bison Prairie | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 12 | Lincoln Children's Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 13 | Northeastern Wisconsin Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 14 | Trailside Museum & Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 15 | Cosley Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 16 | A Cupulatta | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 17 | Ralph Perkins II Wildlife Center and Woods Garden | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 18 | WWI Memorial Park Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 19 | Schramm Education Center | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 20 | Tennessee Aquarium | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 21 | Scales Nature Park | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 22 | Boston Aquarial Gardens | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 23 | SEA LIFE Minnesota Aquarium | 🇺🇸 United States |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Blanding's Turtle sighting in Point Pelee National Park on a given day, based on 16 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 9th most-seen of the 9 reptiles we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 30%, and over a week to about 60%, if each day is a fresh chance.
June
In that month about 30% of wildlife watchers report a Blanding's Turtle in Point Pelee National Park on a given day, against under 5% in July–August and October–March, the lowest months.
Between 10 am and 1 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Blanding's Turtle sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Only Point Pelee National Park, in our data
Point Pelee National Park is the only park on Wallace's Line with enough records to rate Blanding's Turtle sightings: about 10% of wildlife watchers there report one on a given day.
Same family: Emydidae
The closest relatives of the Blanding's Turtle that you can see in Point Pelee National Park (family Emydidae, Pond and Box Turtles) are Painted Turtle (about 70%) and Northern Map Turtle (about 30%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Blanding's Turtle is recorded against all the reptiles logged in Point Pelee National Park (16 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
