Spiny Turtle
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| Spiny Turtle | ||||||||||||||||||||
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| Heosemys spinosa Bell, 1830 |
The Spiny Turtle (Heosemys spinosa) inhabits lowland and hill rainforest, usually in the vicinity of small streams, mainly in hill areas up to 900 m. The Spiny Turtle is known from Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand.
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[edit] Description
The origin of its common and specific name is immediately apparent from the sharp, pointed, spiky-edged carapace, and spiny keel, of this unique turtle, also known as the ‘cog-wheel turtle'. There are also smaller spines on the pleural scutes, creating the effect of a walking pin cushion. It is thought that this spiny ‘armour' acts as a deterrent to predators, such as snakes. However, this unmistakable, strongly-serrated carapace edge and spiny keel become worn down and are lost with age, so that larger individuals are much smoother than juveniles. The carapace is brown with a pale streak down the central keel, and the head and limbs are greyish-brown, usually with a yellow to red spot behind the eye and similar-coloured speckling on the legs. This cryptic colouration helps camouflage the turtle amongst the leaf litter of its forest floor habitat. The plastron is buff coloured with an intricate pattern of dark radiating lines on each scute
[edit] Reproduction
Mating behaviour is apparently stimulated by rains, with males becoming excited when sprayed with water in captivity, chasing females in an attempt to mount. Nesting behaviour is unknown in the wild, but generally one or two eggs are laid per clutch (clutches containing three eggs have been recorded) in captivity, usually at night or in the early morning. Up to three clutches have been produced a year, and to enable the passage of these relatively large eggs, a hinge develops in the female's plastron to allow greater flexibility during egg-laying. There have only ever been a handful of successful captive breeding efforts of the spiny turtle, and those that have been successful have had incubation periods of 106 days, 110 days and 145 days.
[edit] References
- Asian Turtle Trade Working Group (2000). Heosemys spinosa. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 05 May 2006. Database entry includes justification for why this species is endangered
