Fitzroy turtle
| Fitzroy turtle | ||||||||||||
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Fitzroy tortoise ( Rheodytes leukops ) |
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name of the genus | ||||||||||||
| Rheodytes | ||||||||||||
| Legler & Cann , 1980 | ||||||||||||
| Scientific name of the species | ||||||||||||
| Rheodytes leukops | ||||||||||||
| Legler & Cann, 1980 |
The Fitzroy turtle ( Rheodytes leukops ) is a freshwater turtle from the family of the snake-necked turtle (Chelidae) that has so far only been found in the area of the Fitzroy River in Australia .
Systematics
The Fitzroy turtle was first described in 1980 by John Marshall Legler and John Robert Cann .
description
The Fitzroy turtle has large feet, the toes of which are completely webbed. Your shell reaches a maximum length of 25 cm. The armor color is medium to dark brown with darker markings. While the shell of young animals is still jagged on the outside, fully-grown animals have a smooth armor rim, albeit sometimes spikes on the shell surface.
The eyes are a distinctive external feature: the iris is described as ivory in color, and silver in young animals.
The upper side of the elongated neck is covered with tubercles in adult animals . The animals have a pair of barbels on the lower jaw .
habitat
The Fitzroy turtle has so far only been found in the Fitzroy River and its tributaries and tributaries, in the Rockhampton area in east central Queensland . There she lives in river areas with fresh water and permanent, isolated water holes.
Fast flowing water and bodies of water with medium flow velocity and medium depth are definitely described as preferred habitat. There the animals stay on clear sand or gravel floors, facing upstream. Or they linger on the side facing away from the current or even under stones. The places to stay are more varied in slow waters.
Young animals hide most of the time, for example under stones or wood, but if necessary they also dig themselves in the sand. Such hiding places can also be shared by three to four animals.
food
The Fitzroy turtle feeds on larvae of aquatic insects , sponges, and aquatic plants .
Reproduction
The breeding season is from September to November. The females dig a nest in the sand or gravel near the shore. Such nests can be dug about 17 cm deep, less than 10 m from the river, one meter above the water level. There they lay around 20 eggs in one night. One or more clutches can be laid per female per season. The eggs are approximately 29 mm long and 21 mm wide, which is relatively small compared to other species. At a temperature of 30 ° Celsius, the offspring hatch after only about 47 days, again relatively short compared to other species.
particularities
The Fitzroy turtle has a particularly strong form of cloacal breathing via the anal bladder . Your anal bladder is 10 cm in size and 26 cm in length. The cloacal contraction for breathing occurs 15–60 times per minute. Thanks to this ability, the turtle is able to remain submerged in cool, flowing water for days, up to a duration of more than three weeks.
The Fitzroy turtle is considered to be one of the fastest swimmers among the Australian Chelodininae .
threat
The Fitzroy turtle is classified as threatened ( vulnerable ) in the IUCN .
The greatest threat is the loss of eggs and the destruction of the breeding grounds, mainly from feral pigs, foxes and monitor lizards . The age of the population indicates that very few turtles have been able to safely hatch in the past few decades.
The construction of weirs along the Fitzroy River has also restricted suitable habitats for different species of freshwater turtle. Pollution of the environment and rivers also contribute to this.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c d e f g h i j https://www.ehp.qld.gov.au/wildlife/animals-az/fitzroy_river_turtle.html
- ↑ a b c d e f g h i j JM Legler, J. Cann: A new species of chelid turtle from Queensland, Australia. In: Contributions to Science . 324 (1980), Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, pp. 1-18.
- ↑ http://www.fba.org.au/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/BeastsoftheBasin-FactFiles.pdf
- ↑ http://www.mapress.com/zootaxa/2010/f/zt02496p037.pdf p. 30
- ↑ Craig E. Franklin: Aquatic respiration and diving in the freshwater turtle, Rheodytes leukops. In: Journal of Physiology Vol. 523 (2000), p. 87.
- ↑ Toni E. Priest, Craig E. Franklin: Effect of Water Temperature and Oxygen Levels on the Diving Behavior of Two Freshwater Turtles: Rheodytes leukops and Emydura macquarii. In: Journal of Herpetology. Vol. 36, No. 4 (2002), pp. 555-561.
- ↑ http://sci-s03.bacs.uq.edu.au/sib/sib-news/july07/mathie.pdf
- ↑ https://apiv3.iucnredlist.org/api/v3/taxonredirect/19483