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Diet[edit]
The Diamondback terrapin typically feeds on fish, marine snails (especially the saltmarsh periwinkle ), clams, mussels and other mollusks. At high densities the terrapin may eat enough invertebrates to have ecosystem-level effects, partially because periwinkles themselves can overgraze important marsh plants, such as cordgrass (Spartina alterniflora). Gender and age can greatly affect the diet of the Diamondback terrapin, males and juvenile females tend to have less diversity in their diet. Adult females, due to their powerful, defined jaw, will occasionally feed on crustaceans such as crabs and are more likely to consume hard-shelled mollusks.

Status[edit]
In the 1900s the species was once considered a delicacy to eat and was hunted almost to extinction. The population also decreased due to the development of coastal areas, terrapins being susceptible to wounds from the propellors on motorboats. Another common cause of death is the trapping of the turtles in recreational crab traps, as the turtles are attracted to the same bait. Due to these factors, the diamondback terrapin is listed as an endangered species in Rhode Island, a threatened species in Massachusetts and is considered a "species of concern" in Georgia, Delaware, Alabama, Louisiana, North Carolina, and Virginia.[citation needed] The diamondback terrapin is listed as a “high priority species” under the South Carolina Wildlife Action Plan. In New Jersey, it was recommended to be listed as a species of Special Concern in 2001. In July 2016, the species was removed from the New Jersey game list and is now listed as non-game with no hunting season. In Connecticut there is no open hunting season for this animal. However, it holds no federal conservation status.