Yellow-spotted river turtle

The yellow-spotted Amazon river turtle[6] (Podocnemis unifilis), also known commonly as the yellow-headed sideneck turtle and the yellow-spotted river turtle, and locally as the taricaya, is one of the largest South American river turtles.

Yellow-spotted Amazon river turtle
Adult at Krefeld Zoo
CITES Appendix II (CITES)[2]
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Testudines
Suborder: Pleurodira
Family: Podocnemididae
Genus: Podocnemis
Species:
P. unifilis
Binomial name
Podocnemis unifilis
Troschel, 1848[3]
Synonyms
  • Emys cayennensis Schweigger, 1812: 298.[4]
  • Chelys (Hydraspis) Cayennensis, Gray, 1831: 17[5]
  • Hydraspis Cayennensis, Gray, 1831: 42
  • Emys Terekay Schinz, 1833: 41
  • Podocnemis dumeriliana Duméril & Bibron, 1835: 387 (in part)
  • Podocnemis unifilis Troschel, 1848: 647
  • Podocnemis tracaya Coutinho, 1868: 149
  • Chelonemys dumeriliana, Gray, 1870: 83 (in part)
  • Podocnemis cayennensis, Siebenrock, 1902: 1623

Podocnemis unifilis is a type of side-necked turtles, so called because they do not pull their heads directly into their shells, but rather bend their necks sideways to tuck their heads under the rim of their shells. Side-neck turtles are classified as members of the suborder Pleurodira.

Description
Juvenile

Podocnemis unifilis is a large turtle, and can grow up to 45 cm long and weigh up to 8 kg. This species can be recognized by its black or brown oval carapace (upper shell) with distinctive low keels on the second and third scutes. Yellow spots on the side of its head give this species its common name. These spots are most prominent in juveniles and fade with age. Females can be up to twice the size of males.

Distribution and habitat

These turtles are native to South America's Amazon and Orinoco basins, as well as rivers systems of the Guianas.[7] They are found in tributaries and large lakes, naturally calm waters.

Ecology

During the flood season, turtles may venture into flooded forests or floodplain lakes. They feed on fruits, seeds, weeds, aquatic plants, fish, and small invertebrates.[8]

The females lay two clutches of eggs each year, each with four to 35 eggs in it. They make their nests in sandy areas on the banks of rivers, where the eggs will hatch 66 to 159 days after they are laid. The eggs are laid at the peak of dry season so the nest will not be washed away with the floods of the rainy season. Eggs incubated below 32 degrees Celsius will hatch as males, while those incubated above 32 degrees Celsius will hatch as females. Within a few days after hatching, the young turtles begin to forage for food alone. This food includes vegetable matter, grasses, fruits, leaves, carrion and mollusks.

Threats and conservation

Podocnemis unifilis was one of the foreign species exploited by the American pet turtle trade in the 1960s. This species is at risk of predation by humans, birds, snakes, large fish, frogs and mammals.[9] Importation of this species is now strictly regulated by federal law, but a captive, self-sustaining population exists in the United States – some groups in zoos, others in the hands of private collectors. Individuals of this species have lived more than 30 years in captivity.

References
  1. Tortoise & Freshwater Turtle Specialist Group (2016) [errata version of 1996 assessment]. "Podocnemis unifilis". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 1996: e.T17825A97397562. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.1996.RLTS.T17825A7506933.en. Retrieved 28 October 2022.
  2. "Appendices | CITES". cites.org. Retrieved 2022-01-14.
  3. Troschel, H. (1848). Amphibien, p. 645-661. In Schomburgk, R. (ed.), Versuch einer Zusammenstellung der Fauna and Flora von Britisch-Guiana. Leipzig.
  4. Schweigger, A.F. (1812). Prodromus monographiae cheloniorum. Konigsbergeiv Für Naturwissenschaften und Mathematik. 1:271-368.
  5. Gray, J.E. (1831). Synopsis Reptilium or short descriptions of the species of reptiles. Part 1. Cataphracta, tortoises, crocodiles, and enaliosaurians. Treuttel, Wurtz & Co., London.
  6. Podocnemis unifilis, Reptile Database
  7. Rhodin AGJ, Iverson JB, Bour R, Fritz U, Georges A, Shaffer HB, van Dijk PP, et al. (Turtle Taxonomy Working Group) (2017). Rhodin AGJ, Iverson JB, van Dijk PP, et al. (eds.). "Turtles of the World: Annotated Checklist and Atlas of Taxonomy, Synonymy, Distribution, and Conservation Status". Chelonian Research Monographs. Conservation Biology of Freshwater Turtles and Tortoises: A Compilation Project of the IUCN/SSC Tortoise and Freshwater Turtle Specialist Group (8th ed.). 7: 1–292. doi:10.3854/crm.7.checklist.atlas.v8.2017. ISBN 9781532350269. S2CID 89826255.
  8. Murphy, John C. (31 March 2016). "The Herpetology of Trinidad and Tobago: Yellow-headed Sideneck Turtle, Podocnemis unifilis (Family Pelomedusidae)". Retrieved 20 May 2023.
  9. "Yellow-headed sideneck turtle videos, photos and facts - Podocnemis unifilis". Arkive. Archived from the original on 2009-02-20. Retrieved 2018-05-09.

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