Absolutely wonderful! The photo only gives me a small window, and it is possible that this could be a European Pond turtle, but based on your location, that is probably a WESTERN POND TURTLE! They are Actinemys marmorata. They are supposed to be VERY rare in Oregon. Please contact your closest wildlife official. They will probably want to glean some information from you and the person who found the turtle. This turtle could be very valuable for research purposes! Due to size and the flatness of it's plastron, it is most likely a female. It may have just laid a nest or be gravid right now! Please contact an official ASAP. They are highly illegal to keep as pets in your state. They are also illegal to sell in any state where they occur.



I'm very jealous that you were able to see this wild creature, as I have been admiring Western Pond turtles since I was a boy. You've found a treasure, thanks for posting!



Here's a link to pictures, remember that turtles can be very variable in coloration. Also, there are two subspecies of this turtle. The Northern form (Actinemys marmorata marmorata), and the Southern form (Actinemys marmorata pallida). You probably have the marmorata.

http://www.chelonia.org/actinemys_gallery.htm



I found a bunch of links on a simple yahoo search for the Western Pond turtle. Most are not very good. This one is old, but a decent read. They're renamed the turtle recently, from Clemmys to Actinemys.

http://www.tortoise.org/archives/pacpond.html

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