Assam roofed turtle

Assam roofed turtle
Conservation status
Endangered  (IUCN 2.3)[1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Testudines
Suborder:	Cryptodira
Family:	Geoemydidae
Genus:	Pangshura
Species:	P. sylhetensis
Binomial name
Pangshura sylhetensis
Synonyms[2]
Pangshura sylhetensis Jerdon, 1870 Jerdonella sylhetensis Gray, 1870 Kachuga sylhetensis Boulenger, 1889

The Assam roofed turtle (Pangshura sylhetensis), also known as Sylhet roofed turtle (Bengali names: সিলেটী কাইট্টা, সিলেটী কড়ি কাইট্টা, সিলোটী কাইট্টা, সিলেটী কাছিম, কাঁটা কাছিম।) ^[3] is a species of the Geoemydidae family of turtles found in the Brahmaputra-Meghna drainage in India (Assam) and parts of eastern Bangladesh. It was formerly in the Batagur genus and defunct genus Kachuga.

Description

Carapace pattern

The species has a triangular and elevated carapace with a promient spiked keel and strongly serrated marginal plates. The carapace is olive-brown in color, with a lighter (yellowish to beige) keel. The head is small and has a weakly hooked upper jaw; a narrow pink stripe runs from the back of each eye to the middle of the back of the head. Adults may attain a maximum length of 20 cm, although body sizes of ~15 cm are more common.^[3]

Distribution and habitat

The species occurs in the north-eastern & south-eastern parts of Bangladesh, in India (Assam) and possibly in Bhutan. It is found in terrestrial and freshwater habitats in areas with upland tropical moist forest, and fast-flowing streams and perhaps also small rivers. Oxbow lakes may also be inhabited, but shell morphology suggests an adaptation to fast-flowing waters.^[3]

Ecology

The species is amphibian. In the cooler months of the dry season, from December to February, it basks during most of the day; individuals living in cooler hill-streams may do so year round. The turtle is shy and never basks on river banks, but only on emergent logs or rocks. At the slightest disturbance, it will dive quickly to the middle of the river, hiding between rocks. Juveniles often flee into accumulations of dead leaves for camouflage and remain motionless.^[3]

Reproduction

Assam roofed turtles nest between late October and February, corresponding with the cool, dry season, and produce clutches of 6–12 eggs. Hatchlings appear mainly between March and April, at the beginning of the Southeast Monsoons.^[3]

Conservation

The Assam roofed turtle is a rare species known only from a few individuals; it is believed to have one of the narrowest distributions of any south Asian geoemydid. It is exploited for its meat and eggs for local consumption and may also enter the pet trade. Habitat destruction by logging and incidental capture in fishing gear are also thought to present threats. The species is currently classified as Endangered (EN) by the IUCN.^[1][3]

References

Further reading

• Choudhury, Anwaruddin (1993). "New locality records for Kachuga sylhetensis (Jerdon, 1870)". Hamadryad: The Journal of the Madras Crocodile Bank Trust 18: 43–45. 
• Das, Indraneil (1997). "Kachuga sylhetensis recorded from northern Bengal, with notes on turtles of Gorumara National Park, Eastern India". Chelonian Conservation and Biology 2 (4): 616–617. 
• Jerdon, T. C. (1870). "Notes on Indian Herpetology". Proceedings of the Asiatic Society of Bengal. March 1870: 66–85. 
• Praschag, Peter; Fachbach, Günther (2001). "Beiträge zur Kenntnis der Assam-Dachschildkröte, Kachuga sylhetensis (Jerdon 1870) (Reptilia: Testudines: Bataguridae) ["Contributions to the knowledge of the Assam roofed turtle, Kachuga sylhetensis (Jerdon, 1870)"]". Salamandra 37 (3): 129–148. 

External links

• Kachuga sylhetensis at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database

Turtle family Geoemydidae Genus Species of the family Geoemydidae Batagur Burmese roofed turtle Northern river terrapin Painted terrapin Red-crowned roofed turtle Southern river terrapin Three-striped roofed turtle Cuora Amboina box turtle Bourret's box turtle Indochinese box turtle McCord's box turtle Keeled box turtle Pan's box turtle Southern Vietnamese box turtle Chinese three-striped box turtle Yellow-headed box turtle Yellow-margined box turtle Yunnan box turtle Zhou's box turtle Cyclemys Asian leaf turtle Assam leaf turtle Eastern black-bridged leaf turtle Enigmatic leaf turtle Myanmar brown leaf turtle Oldham's leaf turtle Western black-bridged leaf turtle Geoclemys Black pond turtle Geoemyda Black-breasted leaf turtle Ryukyu black-breasted leaf turtle Hardella Brahminy river turtle Heosemys Arakan forest turtle Giant Asian pond turtle Spiny turtle Yellow-headed temple turtle Leucocephalon Sulawesi forest turtle Malayemys Malayan snail-eating turtle Mekong snail-eating turtle Mauremys Balkan pond turtle Caspian turtle Chinese pond turtle Chinese stripe-necked turtle Japanese pond turtle Red-necked pond turtle Spanish pond turtle Vietnamese pond turtle Yellow pond turtle Melanochelys Indian black turtle Tricarinate hill turtle Morenia Burmese eyed turtle Indian eyed turtle Notochelys Malayan flat-shelled turtle Orlitia Malaysian giant turtle Pangshura Assam roofed turtle Brown roofed turtle Indian roofed turtle Indian tent turtle Rhinoclemmys Black river turtle Brown wood turtle Colombian wood turtle Furrowed wood turtle Large-nosed wood turtle Maracaibo wood turtle Mexican spotted wood turtle Painted wood turtle Spot-legged turtle Sacalia Beal's eyed turtle Four-eyed turtle Siebenrockiella Black marsh turtle Philippine forest turtle Vijayachelys Cane turtle Phylogenetic arrangement based on turtles of the world 2011 update: annotated checklist.