---
title: "Rio Grande Cooter"
description: "Pseudemys gorzugi — Reptiles. The Rio Grande cooter (Pseudemys gorzugi) is a species of turtle in the family Emydidae."
canonical: https://animalchecklist.com/animal/rio-grande-cooter
last_updated: 2026-09-20
---

# Rio Grande Cooter

> Pseudemys gorzugi — Reptiles. The Rio Grande cooter (Pseudemys gorzugi) is a species of turtle in the family Emydidae.

- Scientific name: *Pseudemys gorzugi*
- Category: `reptiles` (Reptiles)
- Habitats: `freshwater` (Lakes & rivers)
- iNaturalist observations: 969
- Wikidata: [Q597285](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q597285)
- iNaturalist taxon: [39823](https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/39823)

## Names

- en: Rio Grande Cooter
- de: Rio-Grande-Schmuckschildkröte
- es: Jicotea del Río Bravo

## Countries with the most observations

US (678), MX (163)

## Summary

The Rio Grande cooter (Pseudemys gorzugi) is a species of turtle in the family Emydidae. The species is native to northeastern Mexico and the adjacent southwestern United States.

Text: Wikipedia (en), CC BY-SA 4.0 — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rio_Grande_cooter

## Photo

![Rio Grande Cooter](https://animalchecklist.com/img/animals/rio-grande-cooter/medium.jpg)

Photo: Chris (CP) and Pamela (PP) Pipes · CC0 · inaturalist — https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/24761270

## Machine access

`GET https://animalchecklist.com/api/v1/animals/rio-grande-cooter?lang=en` — see [openapi.json](https://animalchecklist.com/openapi.json).