Geographic Variation in the Musk Turtle, Sternotherus minor

Comparison of a multivariate analysis of chemical characteristics of southeastern rivers with the results of the phenetic analysis of the turtles showed little correlation between environment and turtle morphology. Lack of differentiation of populations seems to be related to the opportunity for gene flow. THROUGHOUT the animal kingdom are found organisms whose unique habits and/or distribution make them particularly adaptable to certain biological investigations. Among these are several whose situations fall into the broad category of island inhabitants. Organisms of this group that have previously been studied mathematically include Uta stansburiana on the islands of the Gulf of California (Soule, 1967), Ascaphus truei from its disjunct