Malagasy beaked turtle
| Malagasy beaked turtle | ||||||||||||
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Malagasy beaked turtle ( Astrochelys yniphora ) |
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| Astrochelys yniphora | ||||||||||||
| ( Vaillant , 1885) |
The Malagasy beak- breasted turtle ( Astrochelys yniphora ) is a species of tortoises (Testudinidae) endemic to Madagascar . It was formerly part of the genus Geochelone .
distribution
As one of the rarest turtle species in the world, the estimated 440 to 770 existing individuals occur in an area of only 25 × 60 kilometers on the northwest coast of Madagascar . The turtle, known there as "Angonoka", inhabits deciduous dry forests and spends the dry season inactive in buildings.
features
The ploughshare-like bone extension at the front end of the belly shell is characteristic . The males use it in the fight for the favor of a female willing to mate. The bone carapace of the Malagasy billed breast turtles can reach a length of 446 millimeters. The animals are very uniformly brightly colored, and there is no radial pattern on the individual "segments". However, the individual segments can be separated from one another by dark colored areas, which is particularly pronounced in young animals.
The nests, which are about 10 centimeters deep in the ground, contain 3 to 6 spherical eggs with a diameter of 42 to 47 millimeters.
Danger
The IUCN lists the billed-breasted turtle with the status "Critically Endangered" and counts the species among the hundred most critically endangered species. The main threats to this species are habitat destruction and illegal trade in animals. It is estimated that there are only around 200 sexually mature specimens left in the wild. In Ampijoroa a breeding program running this type to obtain.
literature
Glaw, F. & Vences, M. A field Guide to the Amphibians and Reptiles of Madagascar. 3rd edition 2007. ISBN 978-3-929449-03-7
Individual evidence
- ↑ IUCN information sheet on the 100 most critically endangered species, engl.
- ^ The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species