The Southern Vietnamese Box turtle (Cuora picturata) is endemic to the southern mountainous regions of Vietnam possibly also occurring in extreme eastern Cambodia and southern Laos. This species was initially described as a subspecies of Cuora galbinifrons

Cuora galbinifrons

The Indochinese box turtle or Vietnamese box turtle or Flowerback box turtle is a species of Asian box turtle from China , northern and central Vietnam, Laos and possibly northeastern Cambodia....

but was shown to be genetically distinct (Stuart & Parham, 2004). This is the same for Cuora galbinifrons bourreti

Cuora galbinifrons bourreti

Cuora galbinifrons bourreti is a turtle subspecies found in central Vietnam and adjacent Laos and commonly called the central Vietnamese flowerback box turtle.-Taxonomy:...

which however is much closer related to Cuora galbinifrons

Cuora galbinifrons

The Indochinese box turtle or Vietnamese box turtle or Flowerback box turtle is a species of Asian box turtle from China , northern and central Vietnam, Laos and possibly northeastern Cambodia....

regarding Osteology, Genetics and Morphology than is Cuora picturata to either one. Thus this variety probably truly deserved species status.
This species has the highest domed carapace of all Cuora species, the shape resembling a Conquistator helmet. While the head coloration of Cuora galbinifrons subspecies is highly variable even in different populations, this is not the case with C.picturata, where the head is always yellow with a fine greyish reticulation.