There is skin present between the seams of the plastron, especially in males. There is a single hinge near the front, but one often look closely to see it. The ground color of the skin is black or dark olive. There are no markings on the skin except for two yellow or white lines on each side of the head. The absence of markings, as well as the appearance of the plastron, distinguishes the stinkpot from all other Iowa turtles.
Males are slightly larger than females and have a longer, thicker tail.
Hatchling stinkpots are less than an inch. They have a vertebral keel at this age, but unlike the map turtles, they have only two light lines on the side of the head and an unmarked, plus-shaped plastron. The stinkpot is found in scattered populations along the Mississippi River in eastern Iowa. Therefore, this turtle is probably found in suitable habitat along the Mississippi River in northern Iowa. Habitat Stinkpots are found in sluggish backwaters, marshes, ponds, and ditches with soft bottoms and surrounding sandy soils close to the Mississippi River in Iowa.