Origin
Native to North America, especially the eastern and southern U.S., including the Mississippi River basin and Florida wetlands.

Visual & Functional Appeal
Their smooth, pancake-like body and snorkel-like nose give them a prehistoric look. Constant movement, swift bursts of speed, and unusual shell structure make them captivating focal animals.

Purpose
Primarily kept for educational displays or by dedicated turtle enthusiasts. These turtles help highlight freshwater adaptations and serve as active, engaging tank inhabitants—though best kept solo.

Importance
Softshells challenge aquarists to create naturalistic, high-function setups. Their strong personalities, speed, and complex behavior patterns offer a different experience from common hard-shelled turtles.

Included Resources
Needs a large aquarium or pond (100+ gallons), soft sandy bottom to prevent plastron injury, shallow and deep zones, high-flow filtration, and basking platforms with UVB and heat.

Best Use Cases
Excellent for dedicated turtle setups, reptile-centric enclosures, or educational environments. Not suited for standard aquariums or community tanks due to aggression and environmental needs.

Conservation Context
Stable but vulnerable to wetland drainage, habitat fragmentation, and collection pressure. Florida Softshell (Apalone ferox) is often overharvested. Support captive-bred-only sourcing.

Ideal Tank Mates
• Best kept alone
• Some large bottom dwellers (like armored catfish) may survive, but no guarantee
• Avoid other turtles or slow-swimming fish

Region (A)
• Latitude: 30.3322° N
• Longitude: -81.6557° W
(Northeast Florida – wetland habitat for Apalone ferox)

Region (B)
• Latitude: 38.6270° N
• Longitude: -90.1994° W
(St. Louis area – Mississippi River range for Apalone spinifera)