STUDBOOK spp. Introduction by studbook keeper Harry Rotmans

Rhinoclemmys pulcherrima incisa (Photo F.Grünewald)

Rhinoclemmys melanosterna (Photo F. Grünewald)

Rhinoclemmys punctularia (Photo F. Grünewald)

Introduction Recently a start has been made with a studbook for Rhinoclemmys spp. An appeal in no. 2(3):94, a magazine of the Nederlandse Schildpadden Vereniging (NSV) (Dutch / Society), produced several positive responses, so the minimum requirements for a new ESF-studbook were met. Because the Rhinoclemmys consists of several , the new studbook will be a coordination of several registrations. The word Rhinoclemmys will be conveniently abbreviated to “R” from now on.

Why this studbook? Gradually, more R. are imported from Middle- and South- America. You get the impression that it is meant to become a relatively cheap alternative to protected turtle species from other parts of the world, which are illegal to trade. The clutch of of the R. species are relative small compared to the greater part of the other turtle species (HOFSTRA), mostly 1 or 2 eggs. A number of R. species produces very few clutches in a year. Sooner or later this will lead to the threatening of the population in the wild. Further factors are the affection and destruction of their environment and the pet trade. R. turtles will be used as food in some places by the locals, the same situation as in Asia. Only the population of people in Asia is more dense than in Middle- and South-America, so the need for food is much higher there. Import in the future will probably not become massive, as far as we can see, because there are no farms in the countries concerned with breeding the species. At the moment, the R. species is not a protected species, but this could change rapidly.

There is relatively less attention for turtles from especially Middle- America among hobbyists and scientists (SCHAFFER). That is a pity, because they are interesting . It is often thought that the best known R. pulcherrima manni and R. pulcherrima incisa belong to the land turtles (SCHILDE). This will obviously lead to disappointment and suffering. Recently, I saw R. pulcherrima manni kept as a land turtle. Exchange of knowledge and experience between and amphibian keepers is one of the goals of ESF. For better readability, the word pulcherrima will be abbreviated tot “p”.

In recent years, I took care of R.p. manni and R.p. incisa myself several times. The animals appeared for the most part in bad condition. Like SCHAFFER rightly says, this is probably due to the fact that the animals arrive in poor condition form their land of origin in the pet trade. This is reinforced because sometimes R.p. manni is marked as easy to keep for starting hobbyist (AUSTIN). Not everybody is of that opinion.

Different R. species originate from different biotopes in Middle- and South-America: from the Yucatàn peninsula, and Belize to the utmost north to Northwest Equador, Gyana and Northeast Brazil at the utmost southern side. The demands for keeping these animals in captivity differ in several aspects, like humidity, temperature, more or less living in water. In specialist literature not much (current) information is known up to now, about keeping and breeding R. species. In the Netherlands we are on the right track. BÄNZIGER (Trionyx 2(2): 62) has excellent breeding results with R.p. manni for three years in a row and HOFSTRA has to be highly commended for his European first in breeding R. funera (Trionyx 3(1):2). As a turtle lover one would say: more of these results with more species in to keep a healthy, genetically pure population in captivity apart from the population in the wild to keep for the future. Rhinoclemmys punctularia

Rhinoclemmys punctularia (Photo’s F.Grünewald)

Rhinoclemmys punctularia Classification of the genus Rhinoclemmys has changed considerably over time; a short explanation. Based on the results of comparative investigation on the genera of the Bataguridae , the name of the turtle genus in question has been changed in the second part of the last century in Rhinoclemmys. This change was justified by the discovery of repeating specific features in this distinct group of turtles. Initially, the Latin name was written with one “m”, later this was changed in a double “m”. It would lead us to far to expand on this. Translation of the Latin names are dissimilar in different languages. In the USA, “” is used, in Germany “erdschildkröte” (earth turtle). This last name makes us think of the link with Geoemyda. Unfortunately, Dutch translations are not yet uniform. In the nomenclature, external characteristics can be used or biotopes of origin. In cooperation with the studbook participants concerned, we will search for the right Dutch name if necessary. Sometimes annulata, rubida rubida and rubida perixantha are classified under the genus Chelopus (AUSTIN. SCHILDE). This only means that more morphological and DNA-investigations must be done.

The total number of R. species and subspecies has changed also. R. lunata was reckoned by specialists as a separate species, sometimes also as a subspecies R. punctularia lunata. Now this “species” is viewed as a flat variation of R. punctularia punctularia from a certain biotope (ERNST 1989). Diademata was viewed by some people as R. punctularia diademata (PRITCHARD AND PRITCHARD & TREBBAU). As you can see, names could cause some confusion. New results from scientific work will have to clarify this further. Not very long ago (1985), a new subspecies was found: R. punctularia flammingera. Recently, a paper was mentioned on a Brazilian website in which was stated that research was under way to a possibly unknown R. species; we will wait and see.

Rhinoclemmys melanosterna (Photo F.Grünewald)

Rhinoclemmys melanosterna (Photo F. Grünewald)

Rhinoclemmys melanosterna (Photo F. Grünewald)

Studbook classification In studbook R. spp. a classification is used which is common in Europe: nine species, three of which are discerned as subspecies.

An overview follows:

Rhinoclemmys annulata Brown Wood Turtle “ areolata Furrowed Wood Turtle “ diademata Diadem Wood Turtle “ funera Black Wood Turtle “ melanostra Columbian Wood Turtle “ nasuta Large-nosed Wood Turtle “ pulcherimma “ “ pulcherimma Wood Turtle “ “ manni “ “ incisa Honduran Wood Turtle “ “ rogerbarbouri Western Mexican Wood Turtle “ punctularia “ “ punctularia Spot-legged Turtle “ “ flammigera Upper Orinoco Spot-legged Turtle “ rubida “ “ rubida Mexican Spotted Wood Turtle “ “ perixantha Colima Wood Turtle

Rhinoclemmys areolata (Photo Nipon) Rhinoclemmys funereal (Photo Nipon)

Registration We will start with the registration of the division R. pulcherrima ssp. and especially the best known subspecies P.p. manni and R.p. incisa. The required minimal number of studbook participants have been found for both subspecies and it appeared that the minimal number of bloodlines is present so that genetically viable breeding programs can be started. In Europe, especially in the western part, there are sufficient numbers of both subspecies in captivity. When enough studbook participants and bloodlines are presented of one of the other R. (sub)species, we will start a studbook registration for that (sub)species also.

RHINOCLEMMYS PULCHERRIMA ssp. The species Pulcherrima only appears in Middle-America: the southern and Colima in Mexico, western , all of , almost all of , western and north- western . In the northern area the animals are flatter and broader, in the southern one narrower and more domed. This distinction leads to the description of four subspecies. From north to south: P. rogerbarbouri, pulcherrima, incisa, manni.

Although it seems pretty easy to make a distinction between these subspecies, in reality it can be quite hard. The naming under photographs are not univocal; for example, compare photographs in MÜLLER and KOHLER. Naturally one has to take into account possible hybridisation of subspecies in the habitat. Furthermore, it happens regularly that in one import different subspecies are mixed and offered under one name. Especially R.p. incisa and R.p. rogerbarbouri get mixed up on a regular basis. Further investigation in this area will be worth while and will be done. Because keepers of R. species are expressly invited to present their animals for registration in order to keep the species by breeding, an attempt will hereafter be made to better identify the subspecies. Of course, colour nuances will occur and colours and patterns will diminish in older animals.

Rhinoclemmys pulcherrima manni – Rhinoclemmys pulcherrima incise/manni – Rhinoclemmys pulcherrima incisa (Photo F. Grünewald)

General characteristics of the species Pulcherrima: The top of the head has a pattern with one or two orange lines, which start square with the point of the nose, widening over the eye to the temple (the so called supratemporal lines and in some subspecies go on running intermittently to the backside. On top of the nose there is usually a dark pigment. The legs are usually roughly scaled. The carapax has a rough surface, with or without so called peacock eye pattern on the rib shields. Males are smaller and have a slightly hollowed out round plastron. The tail is relative small and with males a bit longer of course and markedly thicker. The toes do not have strongly developed webbing and end in sharp claws.

R. pulcherrima pulcherrima (GRAY, 1855) Counts as main form

Rhinoclemmys pulcherrima pulcherrima (Photo’s G.Müller)

Head: On the light grey top of the head are only a short thin orange-red stripe extends from the point of the nose in a broad V-shape to the eyes (not behind the eyes) and one short orange-red line from eye to eye. Just under the point of the nose are one or two orange-red strips as wide as the nose (the so called moustache-shape). Some people say the iris of the eyes are red. However, I have seen specimens with the characteristic bright blue iris. The upper jaw is gouged and the snout is peaked. Jaws and throat are coloured yellow. The side of the neck is yellow with sharply defined black twisting longitudinal stripes. The throat and underside of the neck is yellow with an irregular, very fine black dotted pattern. The sides of the neck are yellow to light-grey blending into sharply defined black longitudinal stripes in an irregular pattern.

Legs: The front legs have large broad yellow or red scales with a small black dotted pattern. The hind legs have a pattern of black dots in the shape of a longitudinal line. Furthermore, the soft parts and limbs are somewhat olive-green to a yellowish colour. On the hind legs and tail there are broad red and whitish stripes.

Carapax: Shape: fairly flat and broad with one visible keel at the back somewhat serrated. Surface: rough with clearly visible growth rings. Base colour: light- to middle-brown with a small black dotted pattern. Each rib shield has little black spots on a underground of light vague various yellow-red and grey. The underside of the marginal shields are bright yellow-orange with black spots and some stripe pattern.

Plastron: There is a broad, not well defined and somewhat fading black longitudinal spot running over the middle line of the yellow plastron. On the front and lateral shields this longitudinal spot can be forked. The bridge between carapax and plastron has a broad yellow and a broad black horizontal stripe (beam).

R. pulcherrima incisa (BOCOURT, 1868)

Rhinoclemmys pulcherrima incisa (Photo’s H.J. Rotmans)

Head: Light grey-green with a somewhat thicker orange/red stripe pattern. In comparison with the pulcherrima pulcherrima the incisa has more and longer stripes, who run also behind the eyes in the back of the neck. The iris of the eyes is bright blue.

Legs: Less coarse scaled than the legs of the manni. At the front are the legs preponderant red or orange with irregular black spots.

Carapax: Shape: medium highly domed in the North to highly domed in the South; even so high that the height of the carapax of the manni become equal. West of the Lago de Managua and the Lago de Nicaragua in Nicaragua there is a long-drawn coast-area where the incisa as well as the manni both are found. Without doubt this leads to some hybrids, which hinders the determining. It is possible that in the future more subspecies will be determined. The base colour of the carapax of the pure incisa is middle- to dark- brown without a pattern or with very, very vague black little spots. The hybrid has on every rib shield a light red or yellow stripe, rounded with black. At the underside of every marginal shield is a light broad pattern of stripes.

Plastron: The faded dark longitudinal spot on the middle line is smaller than the one in R.p. pulcherrima and is not forked on the front and lateral shields. The bridge has an overall brown-black colour.

Rhinoclemmys pulcherrima incisa (Photo F. Grünewald)

Rhinoclemmys pulcherrima incisa (Photo F. Grünewald)

Rhinoclemmys pulcherrima incisa (Photo F. Grünewald)

R. pulcherrima manni ( DUNN, 1930) The most colourful turtle pulcherrima species.

Rhinoclemmys pulcherrima manni (Photo K.T. Nemuras)

Rhinoclemmys pulcherrima manni (Photo F. Grünewald)

Rhinoclemmys pulcherrima manni (Photo’s H.J. Rotmans)

Head: The head is greenish with two or three thick, bright red or bright orange coloured strips crosswise over the snout. The lower stripe runs under the eye to the back. The throat and underside/side of the neck is yellow with a irregular pattern of peacock eyes rounded with black.

Legs: The front legs have a red and black longitudinal stripe and are coarse scaled.

Carapax: Shape: very highly domed and compared to other subspecies, narrow. Base colour: light-brown to more yellowish. On every rib shield several very big red and yellow peacock eyes rounded with black. The colour of the peacock eyes are in comparison with the other subspecies very bright. The pure manni has a black spot (pupil) in each peacock. The vertebral shields have also a distinct pattern, but not in the shape of a peacock eye, it lacks a pupil. The upper side of every marginal shield has one big peacock eye, rounded with black on three sides. The underside of every marginal shield has two light broad stripes (beams). The entire pattern of the hybrids is explicit less orange /red painted.

Plastron: The clear, rather narrow dark spot can fork out to the front and lateral shields. The bridge has a yellow and a thick black horizontal stripe.

R. pulcherrima rogerbarbouri (ERNST 1978)

Head: Light-grey with a thin, fine orange/red pattern of stripes. The side under the eye has almost no orange/red pattern of stripes.

Legs: The front legs have a longitudinal stripe rounded with red.

Carapax: For this species flat, broad, green/brown without a peacock eye pattern. Sometimes a vague reddish longitudinal stripe can be discerned. The underside of every marginal shield has a single light broad stripe.

Plastron: The underground is yellow-brown. A very broad, often faded, dark longitudinal spot can be seen on the middle line. The bridge has an overall brown colour.

Rhinoclemmys pulcherrima rogerbarbouri Rhinoclemmys punctularia flammigera (Photo’s Nipon)

Finally: Keepers of R. species are explicitly invited to present their turtles to the studbook.

The Netherlands, March, 2005 Update, December 2005

Literature: - Austin’s Turtle Page (ATP), 2004: Rhinoclemmys pulcherrima manni - http://www.austinsturtlepage.com/Care/cs-caowood.htm , USA

- Bänziger, Fons : Die Costa-Rica-Pracht-Erdschildkröte, Rhinoclemmys pulcherrima manni - Zeitschrift Marginata nr.7, sept. 2005, UTV-Verlag GmbH, Münster DE

- Basile. Ignaz A., 1995: Faszinierende schildkröten – Verlag Stephanie Naglschmid, Stuttgart, DE (R. punctularia)

- The Central Pets Foundation: Rhinoclemmys pulcherrima incise- Honduran Wood Turtle. USA http://search.centralpets.com/pages/critterpages/reptiles/turtles/TUR49 82.shtml

- Ernst, Carl H. & Barbour, Roger W., 1989: Turtles of the world – Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington D.C., USA (R.: annulata, areolata, diademata, funereal, lunata, malanosterna, nasuta, pulcherrima ssp., punctularia, rubida ssp.)

- Hofstra, Jelle, 2004: Eerste kweek met de Zwarte aardschildpad (Rhinoclemmys funerea) – Tijdschrift Trionyx 3(1), NL

- Jolman, Matt, 2003: Rhinoclemmys pulcherrima – Animal Diversity Web (ADW) August 04, 2004, Univ. of Michigan Museum of Zoology, USA http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Rhi noclemmys_pulcherrima.html

- Köhler, Gunther, 2000: Reptilien und Amphibien Mittelamerikas, Band 1: Krokodile . Schildkröten . Echsen – Herpeton, Verlag Elke Köhler, Offenbach DE (R.: annulata, areolata, funereal, melanosterna, pulcherrima ssp., rubida )

- McCormick, Betsy, 1998: The Mexican Wood Turtle, Rhinoclemmys pulcherrima – Tortuga Gazette 34(1), USA http://www.tortoise.org/archives/rhino.html

- Mende, Andreas & Berndt, Thomas: Haltung, Plege und Nachtzucht der Pracht-Erdschildkröte Rhinoclemmyspulcherrima incisa (Bocourt , 1868), Zeitschrift Marginata nr.7, sept. 2005, UTV-Verlag, Münster, DE

- Métrailler, Sébastien, & Gratiet, Georges Le, 1967/1996: Tortues continentales de Guyane française – P.M.S., CP 82, Bramois, CH (R. punctularia punctularia,)

- Mexican Fauna, Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco : Rhinoclemmys pulcherrima MEX http://www.vivanatura.org/Rhinoclemmys%pulcherrima.html

- Michels, Jan : Der Tropische Trockenwald im Nordwesten Costa Ricas- ein Habitat von Rhinoclemmys pulcherrima manni - Zeitschrift Marginata nr.7, sept. 2005, UTV-Verlag, Münster, DE

- Müller, Gerhard, 1987: Schildkröten – Verlag Eugen Ulmer GmbH & Co, DE (Geoemyda/R.: annulata, areolata, funerea, pulcherrima ssp., punctularia, ssp.,

- Pauler, Ingo, 1980: Lebensweise, Ernährung und Nachzucht von Geoemyda pulcherrima manni – tijdschrift DATZ 33, DE

- Philippen, Hans-Dieter, 2005: Pracht-Erdschildkröten Rhinoclemmys pulcherrima (Gray, 1856 – Zeitschrift Marginata nr. 7, sept. 2005, NTV-Verlag GmbH, Münster, DE

- Pritchard, Peter.C.H., 1989/1997: Encyclopedia of Turtles – T.F.H., Publications, Inc. Ltd, Neptune, New Jersey, USA (R.: annulata, areolata, diademata, funereal, ‘lunata’, melanosterna, nasuta, pulcherrima ssp., punctularia, rubida ssp.)

- Pritchard, Peter.C.H. & Trebbau, Pedro, 1984: The turtles of Venezuela – SSAR, Miami University, Oxford, Ohio, USA (R.: diademata, punctularia)

- Rogner, Manfred, 1995: Schildkröten 1, Heiro-Verlag, Hürtgenwald, DE (R.: annulata, areolata, diademata, funerea, melanosterna, nasuta, pulcherrima ssp., punctularia ssp., rubida ssp.)

- Schaffer, Gerard, 2000: Haltung und Zucht der Pracht- Erdschildkröte Rhinoclemmys pulcherrima manni – tijdschrift 7(4), AT

- Schilde, Maik, 2004: Die Pracht- Erdschildkröte – Natur und Tier- Verlag Gmbh, Münster, DE (R. pulcherrima ssp.)

- Vetter, Holger, 2005: Turtles of the world Vol.3, Central and South America, Edition Chimaira /Verlag ACS GmbH (AQUALOG), Frankfurt am Main, DE (R.: annulata, areolata, diademata, funereal, melanosterna, nasuta, pulcherrima pulcherrima, p.incisa, p.manni, punctularia punctularia, p.flammigera, rubida rubida, r.perixantha)

- Weiss, Lisa, 2003: Rhinoclemmys pulcherrima Gallery – World Chelonian Trust, USA http://www.chelonia.org/Articles/PDFS/Rhinoclemmys%20pulcherri ma.pdf

Some photographs on websites:

- A Cupulatta, Galerie des Tortues: http://www.acupulatta.com/fiche109.htm (R.pulcherrima)

- California Turtle and Tortoise Club : http://www.tortoise.org/gallery/picrhino.html (R. pulcherrima incisa)

- El web de las tortugas : http://www.iespana.es/tortuga/pulcherrima.htm (R. aurolata en pulcherrima manni)

- Mega-turtles. be: Rhinoclemmys pulcherrima incise http://users.skynet.be/mega-turtles/mexicaansebosschildpad.html

- Mexican fauna, Puerto Vallarta. Jalisco, Petr Myska: http://www.vivanatura.org/Rhinoclemmys%20pulcherrima%20ExtraP hotos.html (R. pulcherrima)

- Schroetchenseite, Hellmut Beck: Rhinoclemmys pulcherrima incise, Rhinoclemmys pulcherrima manni http://home.arcor.de/schroete/arten/index.html

- World Chelonian Trust : http://www.chelonia.org/rhinoclemmys_gallery.htm (R. spp.)