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November/December 2016, Volume 52, Number 6

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November/December 2016, Volume 52, Number 6 November | December 2016 the Tortuga Gazette Volume 52, Number 6 California Turtle & Tortoise Club founded in 1964 and dedicated to Turtle & Tortoise Preservation, Conservation and Education Young Asian leaf turtle, Cyclemys dentata, with a carapace length of 14 centimeters (5.5 inches), from Banten, West Java, Indonesia. Photo © 2010 by Wibowo Djatmiko. Source: Creative Commons; license CC-BY-SA-3.0,2.5,2.0,1.0. Asian Leaf Turtle, Cyclemys dentata (Gray, 1831) The Circle Turtle by M. A. Cohen ollectively known as “leaf turtles,” leaf turtle, aka Malaysian Black Mud atripons (Iverson & McCord, 1997), native the species names in the follow- Turtle); to Cambodia, Thailand; ing list demonstrate one of the 6. Hieremys annandalii (Yellow-headed • Asian leaf turtle, C. dentata (Gray, 1831), Cweaknesses of common names. In both temple turtle, aka Asian leaf turtle). native to Brunei, Indonesia, Thailand, Ma- appearance and range, these species are Focusing on Cyclemys dentata, the cur- laysia, Singapore; diverse even as they are all native to Asia: rent article will profile the most widely • Oldham’s leaf turtle, C. oldhamii (Gray, 1. Cyclemys dentata (Asian leaf turtle, aka studied species in this group. Moreover, 1863), native to India, Indonesia, Lao Brown stream terrapin); rather than being a single species, as People’s Democratic Republic, Myanmar, 2. Cyclemys tcheponensis (Stripe-necked taxonomists initially thought, chelonian Malaysia, Thailand; leaf turtle); science now recognizes a species com- • Eastern black-bridged leaf turtle, C. pul- 3. Geoemyda spengleri (Black-breasted plex with as many as five to six species in christriata (Fritz, Gaulke & Lehr, 1997), leaf turtle or Chinese leaf turtle, aka the C. dentata complex. native to Vietnam; and Vietnamese Wood Turtle); According to the Asian Turtle Trade 4. Mauremys (Annamemys) annamensis Working Group, the genera within this • Stripe-necked leaf turtle, C. tcheponen- (Vietnamese or Annam leaf turtle, species complex as of 2000 (the last year sis (Bourret, 1939), native to Lao People’s aka Vietnamese Pond Turtle); of assessment) included the following: Democratic Republic, Thailand, Vietnam 5. Siebenrockiella crassicollis (Borneo black • Western black-bridged leaf turtle, C. (Cyclemys dentata, 2016). 2 Cyclemys, the genus name of this (dolphins, porpoises and whales), rep- able of Contents turtle, derives from two Greek root tiles and fish studied and described by T words: cycl-, which means “circle,” and the British zoologist. A prolific writer, Turtle of the Month emys-, meaning “a turtle or tortoise.” during his tenure as the Keeper of Zo- Asian Leaf Turtle Referring to the carapace of some in- ology at the British Museum (1840 to Cyclemys dentata dividuals, the generic name describes 1874), Gray produced over 1,000 pa- the distinctly circular shape of some pers on an array of topics related to his 1 The Circle Turtle by M. A. Cohen turtles in the species complex. field of expertise. 4 Everybody in the Pond! by Karen Berry Identification 8 The Turtle’s Garden: Corkscrew Vine by M. A. A small to medium-sized semi- Cohen aquatic species, at maturity C. dentata reaches 6 to 9.5 inches (15 to 24 cen- 10 Chicago Herpetological Society abstracts timeters) in carapace length. Oval in 11 CITES CoP17: Conservationists Urge shape with one medial keel, the spe- Immediate Action to End Poaching of cies’ flattened carapace ranges in Ploughshare Tortoise coloration from black to dark brown 12 Conservationists Raise Alarm Over Hawai- through olive, light brown and oc- ian Green Sea Turtle Nesting Numbers casionally mahogany (Ernst et al.). – Turtle Island Restoration Network press release Radiations, i.e., fine parallel lines, Arizona’s Sonoyta Mud Turtle Proposed for sometimes mark the carapace. Endangered Species Act Protection After Ranging in coloration from yellow to Waiting for 19 Years – Center for Biological Diversity black, the species’ plastron varies from press release yellow to light brown with narrow dark radiations to solid brown or black, and in every issue : is noticeably narrower than the cara- 2 Table of Contents pace (Ernst et al.). A transverse plastral hinge develops as the turtle matures. 7 Mike’s Turtle Net Picks by Michael J. Connor, PhD Such a hinge is likely to facilitate egg- s Meetings and Programs laying in females, as the eggs produced by the species are large relative to the 9 Classified Advertisements Rendering from Illustrations of Indian Zoology, Vol. 2, pub- size of the turtle. s Membership Information lished between 1833 and 1834. Illustration by Thomas Reddish-brown with darker brown Hardwicke (1755-1835). Public domain. jaws, the skin of the young turtle’s head displays red and yellow linear Derived from the Latin root word markings called stria, as does the neck. Follow CTTC on Facebook dentat, the species name, dentata, These striations generally fade or means “toothed.” A term characteriz- disappear altogether as the turtle ma- California Turtle & Tortoise Club: a Society Dedicated to Turtle & Tortoise Preservation, Conservation and ing a physical attribute, dentata refers tures. Conversely, in some portions of Edu-cation Since 1964. Promoting and Facilitating to the serrated marginal scutes of the its range, individuals retain the bright the Care, Rehoming, and Adoption of Native and hatchlings and juveniles of C. dentata. stria throughout their lives. The turtle’s Nonnative Turtles and Tortoises. Ordinarily, as the turtle matures, the head features a slightly projecting The Tortuga Gazette (ISSN 1073-1334) is owned by the Cal- edges of these marginal scutes trans- snout and an upper jaw with smooth ifornia Turtle & Tortoise Club Executive Board, which is form shape from serrated to smooth. rather than toothlike edges. Coloration incorporated in the State of California as a Not-for-Profit However, some individuals retain the of the limbs and tail varies from cream Corporation and is tax-exempt under IRS code 501(c)(3). serrated marginals throughout their to light brown (Ernst et al.). All material is copyright © CTTC unless otherwise attrib- lives. uted. CTTC policy permits reproduction of articles by In keeping with many chelonian spe- other not-for-profit g r oups a n d e d ucational i n stitutions As a member of the chelonian family cies, females typically reach larger sizes when permission is requested. Permission is granted on a of Old World Pond Turtles (Geoemydi- than males, while the males have lon- case-by-case basis and CTTC must be cited as the source dae, formerly known as Bataguridae), ger, thicker tails than the females. of the material. C. dentata belongs to a large and di- Views expressed in the Tortuga Gazette are those of the verse family of some 70 species that Range and Habitat contributors and not necessarily those of the Editor or the Native to Southeast Asia, document- California Turtle & Tortoise Club. occur in tropical and subtropical Asia, Europe and North Africa, with a single ed populations of C. dentata occur in Is your email address changing? genus, Rhinoclemmys, being native to Bangladesh; Brunei Darussalam; Cam- bodia; northeastern India; Indonesia Update your email address through your Central and South America. (Borneo, Java and Sumatra); Lao Peo- MailChimp account, or send address Officially described in 1831 by John ple’s Democratic Republic; the changes and corrections to this address: Edward Gray (1800-1875), C. dentata Malaysian peninsula; Myanmar; Nepal; [email protected] is one of various species of cetaceans the Philippines, Singapore; Thailand, Tortuga Gazette Volume 52, Number 6 3 Wildlife Sanctuary in west- Data developed during this study indicat- ern Thailand. Within this one ed that Cyclemys atripons and C. dentata population, appearance dif- are sister species which the team grouped ferences included “striated as a single species. Extensive hybridiza- vs. uniformly dark animals, tion among closely related species leads round and broad-shelled vs. to a loss of biodiversity, as the vanishing elongated and oval-shelled C. enigmatica genome serves to confirm. animals, and individuals with Reaching the conclusion that “the pet domed shells vs. flattened in- trade, food trade, and use in Traditional dividuals“ (Ernst et al.). Chinese Medicine threaten wild popula- Accordingly, in 2008 a tions of Cyclemys species,” the Guangxi team of scientists from the University team suggests that the scien- Norwegian Academy of tific determination of “genetic diversities” Science and Letters led by is essential to formulating strategies for Uwe Fritz tackled the se- protecting wild these populations (Huang quencing of the C. dentata et al., 2015). genome. Through earlier studies, Fritz and colleagues Threats and Conservation Threatened by a similar set of cir- Young Asian leaf turtle, Cyclemys dentata, with a carapace length of 14 centimeters (5.5 had established “two mor- inches), from Banten, West Java, Indonesia. Photo © 2010 by Wibowo Djatmiko. Note cumstances as other chelonian species phologically-distinct major the distinctively circular shape of the turtle’s carapace. worldwide, the C. dentata complex, “cur- groups” within the C. den- rently faces a unique overkill scenario, and Vietnam (Asian Turtle Trade Working tata complex based on the caused by massive overexploitation for Group, 2016). It may occur in eastern Ne- coloration of their plastrons, which the food and Traditional Chinese Medicine pal as well (Ernst et al.). researchers termed the yellow-bellied acting in accord with large-scale habitat Characterized as a semi-aquatic group and the dark-bellied group (Fritz destruction, and this is especially true for species, the Asian leaf turtle favors clear- et al.). Southeast Asia,“ to quote a succinct state- water ponds, rivers, and streams with As a result of the Norwegian Acad- ment by Dr. van Dijk of the Asian Turtle shallow, slow-moving water in both high- emy study, the team concluded that the Trade Working Group. land and lowland ecosystems (Ernst et al.). Cyclemys complex “data indicate a high These facts notwithstanding, the IUCN The turtle prefers walking on the bottom diversity.” Comprising the yellow-bellied Red List categorizes the C.
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