Chelodina
Encyclopedia
This large and diverse genus of long-necked Chelid
turtles has had a complicated nomenclatural history. Although in the past the following have been considered separate genera and prior to that all the same, they are now considered sub-genera of the one genus.
Chelodina is an ancient group of Chelid
turtle
s native to Australia
, New Guinea
and the island of Rote Island
of the Indonesian archepeligo. The turtles within this subgenus are small to medium sized, with oval shaped carapace
. They are side-necked turtles, meaning they tuck their head partially around the side of their body when threatened instead of directly backwards.
Macrochelodina represents those species that have often been termed the Chelodina B group, or thick necked snake neck turtles. The sub-genus was described in 1985 by Wells & Wellington (as a new genus) but was not recognized until recently when it was shown that the name was valid. As such they are a side-neck turtle of the family Chelidae
with extremely long necks and long flattened heads. They are specialist fish eaters using a strike and gape mode of feeding. They are medium to large species with the largest Chelodina M. expansa reaching shell lengths of some 45 cm. The first fossils (C. M. alanrixi) are known from Queensland
from the Eocene
period (Lapparent de Broin, F. de, & Molnar, R. E., 2001).
Macrodiremys is a monotypic genus recently split off from the rest of the Chelodina. Its sole member is the enigmatic Chelodina Macrodiremys colliei from Western Australia.
Subgenus: Chelodina Fitzinger, 1826
Subgenus: Macrochelodina Wells & Wellington, 1985
Subgenus: Macrodiremys (McCord & Joseph-Uoni 2007)
Chelidae
The Chelidae are one of the three living families of the turtle suborder Pleurodira and are commonly called the Austro-South American Side Neck turtles. The Family is distributed in Australia, New Guinea, parts of Indonesia and throughout most of South America. It is a large family of turtles with...
turtles has had a complicated nomenclatural history. Although in the past the following have been considered separate genera and prior to that all the same, they are now considered sub-genera of the one genus.
Chelodina is an ancient group of Chelid
Chelidae
The Chelidae are one of the three living families of the turtle suborder Pleurodira and are commonly called the Austro-South American Side Neck turtles. The Family is distributed in Australia, New Guinea, parts of Indonesia and throughout most of South America. It is a large family of turtles with...
turtle
Turtle
Turtles are reptiles of the order Testudines , characterised by a special bony or cartilaginous shell developed from their ribs that acts as a shield...
s native to Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, New Guinea
New Guinea
New Guinea is the world's second largest island, after Greenland, covering a land area of 786,000 km2. Located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, it lies geographically to the east of the Malay Archipelago, with which it is sometimes included as part of a greater Indo-Australian Archipelago...
and the island of Rote Island
Rote Island
right|thumb|300px|Satellite photo of RotiRote Island is an island of Indonesia, part of the East Nusa Tenggara province of the Lesser Sunda Islands. It has an area of . It lies northeast of the Australian coast and northeast of the Ashmore and Cartier Islands. The island is situated to the...
of the Indonesian archepeligo. The turtles within this subgenus are small to medium sized, with oval shaped carapace
Carapace
A carapace is a dorsal section of the exoskeleton or shell in a number of animal groups, including arthropods such as crustaceans and arachnids, as well as vertebrates such as turtles and tortoises. In turtles and tortoises, the underside is called the plastron.-Crustaceans:In crustaceans, the...
. They are side-necked turtles, meaning they tuck their head partially around the side of their body when threatened instead of directly backwards.
Macrochelodina represents those species that have often been termed the Chelodina B group, or thick necked snake neck turtles. The sub-genus was described in 1985 by Wells & Wellington (as a new genus) but was not recognized until recently when it was shown that the name was valid. As such they are a side-neck turtle of the family Chelidae
Chelidae
The Chelidae are one of the three living families of the turtle suborder Pleurodira and are commonly called the Austro-South American Side Neck turtles. The Family is distributed in Australia, New Guinea, parts of Indonesia and throughout most of South America. It is a large family of turtles with...
with extremely long necks and long flattened heads. They are specialist fish eaters using a strike and gape mode of feeding. They are medium to large species with the largest Chelodina M. expansa reaching shell lengths of some 45 cm. The first fossils (C. M. alanrixi) are known from Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
from the Eocene
Eocene
The Eocene Epoch, lasting from about 56 to 34 million years ago , is a major division of the geologic timescale and the second epoch of the Paleogene Period in the Cenozoic Era. The Eocene spans the time from the end of the Palaeocene Epoch to the beginning of the Oligocene Epoch. The start of the...
period (Lapparent de Broin, F. de, & Molnar, R. E., 2001).
Macrodiremys is a monotypic genus recently split off from the rest of the Chelodina. Its sole member is the enigmatic Chelodina Macrodiremys colliei from Western Australia.
Taxonomy
Current taxonomy follows that of Georges & Thomson, 2010Subgenus: Chelodina Fitzinger, 1826
- Chelodina C. canniChelodina canniCann's snake-neck turtle is an Australian species found in the northern and north eastern parts of the continent. It has a narrow zone of hybridization with its related species the Eastern Snake Neck Turtle Chelodina longicollis...
(McCord & Thomson, 2002) - Chelodina C. longicollis (Shaw, 1794)
- Chelodina C. mccordiRoti Island Snake-necked TurtleThe Roti Island snake-necked turtle is an extremely threatened turtle species from Rote Island south west of Timor between New Guinea and Australia...
(Rhodin, 1994) - Chelodina C. novaeguineae (Boulenger, 1888)
- Chelodina C. reimanni (Philippen and Grossmann, 1990)
- Chelodina C. pritchardi (Rhodin, 1994)
- Chelodina C. steindachneri (Siebenrock, 1914)
Subgenus: Macrochelodina Wells & Wellington, 1985
- Chelodina M. alanrixi (fossil)
- Chelodina M. insculpta (fossil)
- Chelodina M. burrungandjiiChelodina burrungandjiiThe Arnhem Land Long Neck Turtle was described in 2000 and named for the Gadjagu People's word for this species. It is a large and unique long-neck species that is restricted to the plunge pools and escarpements of the Northern Territory, Australia....
(Thomson, Kennett & Georges, 2000) - Chelodina M. expansa (Gray, 1857)
- Chelodina M. parkeri (Rhodin and Mittermeier, 1976)
- Chelodina M. rugosa (Ogilby, 1890)
Subgenus: Macrodiremys (McCord & Joseph-Uoni 2007)
- Chelodina M. collieiNarrow-breasted Snake-necked TurtleThe narrow-breasted snake-necked turtle or long necked tortoise is a species of turtle in the Chelidae family.It is endemic to the southwestern part of Western Australia....
(Gray, 1841)
External links
- Taxonomic history of the genus Chelodina
- GBIF Biodiversity Data Portal
- Turtles of the World > Species Chelodina (Snake-necked turtles)
- Overview of Chelodiona (and related) species - distribution maps, descriptions, photos