Type: report

Article abstract: Data Summary. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) has been conducting research on the southwestern pond turtle (Actinemys pallida, WPT) for over 20 years, which includes data collection and observations on their natural history, behavior, and conservation. This research provides information for various land management agencies as the WPT has been identified as a species of concern by the State of California (CDFW 2021) and has been in decline in southern California since the 1980s (Brattstrom and Messer 1988). For example, Brattstrom and Messer (1988) identified only eight populations in San Diego County and indicated that as few as five of the populations south of the Santa Clara River were reproductively viable over the long-term. In the 1980s and 1990s, studies began to examine the status and health of the populations in southern California with lower Murrieta Creek being one of the study areas (Holland 1991, Lovich 1998). The species is under review for listing under the Endangered Species Act (U.S. Endangered Species Act [ESA 1973, as amended]) based on a 90-day finding issued in April 2015 (USFWS 2015, 80 FR 19259).