Giant musk turtle

Giant musk turtle
Staurotypus salvinii in an aquarium
CITES Appendix II (CITES)[1]
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Testudines
Suborder: Cryptodira
Family: Kinosternidae
Genus: Staurotypus
Species:
S. salvinii
Binomial name
Staurotypus salvinii
Gray, 1864
Synonyms[2]
  • Staurotypus (Stauremys) salvinii
    Gray, 1864
  • Stauremys salvinii
    — Gray, 1870
  • Staurotypus marmoratus
    Fischer, 1872
  • Claudius severus
    Cope, 1872
  • Staurotypus (Claudius) severus
    — Bocourt, 1876
  • Staurotypus salvini [sic]
    Günther, 1885 (ex errore)
  • Staurotypus biporcatus
    Gadow, 1905 (nomen nudum)
  • Staurotypus salvanii [sic]
    Beltrán, 1953 (ex errore)

The giant musk turtle (Staurotypus salvinii) , also known commonly as the Chiapas giant musk turtle or the Mexican giant musk turtle , is a species of turtle in the family Kinosternidae. The species is found in Central America.

Geographic range

S. salvinii is found in Belize, El Salvador, Guatemala, western Honduras, and Mexico (Chiapas and Oaxaca).[3]

Habitat

The giant musk turtle prefers to inhabit slow-moving bodies of freshwater such as reservoirs, and rivers with soft bottoms and ample vegetation.[4]

Etymology

The specific name, salvinii, honors English naturalist and herpetologist Osbert Salvin.[5]

Description

S. salvinii is typically much larger than other species of Kinosternidae, attaining a straight carapace length of up to 38 cm (15 inches), with males being significantly smaller than females. It is typically brown, black, or green in color, with a yellow underside. The carapace is distinguished by three distinct ridges, or keels which run its length. The giant musk turtle tends to be quite aggressive, agile and energetic.[3]

S. salvinii exhibits XX/XY sex determination, in contrast to the temperature-dependent sex determination of most turtles.[6]

Diet

Like other musk turtle species, S. salvinii is carnivorous, eating various species of fishes, crustaceans, smaller turtles, insects, mollusks, and carrion. The giant musk turtle's feeding technique is to open its mouth rapidly leading to a powerful inrush of water which sucks the prey into its mouth.[3]

Reproduction

S. salvinii is oviparous.[7]

References

  1. ^ "Appendices | CITES". cites.org. Retrieved 2023-03-01.
  2. ^ Fritz, Uwe; Havaš, Peter (2007). "Checklist of Chelonians of the World". Vertebrate Zoology. 57 (2): 260–261. doi:10.3897/vz.57.e30895. ISSN 1864-5755.
  3. ^ a b c Bonin, Franck; Devaux, Bernard; Dupré, Alain (2006). Turtles of the World. (Translated by Peter C. H. Pritchard). Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. 416 pp. ISBN 978-0801884962.
  4. ^ Ernst, Carl H.; Barbour, Roger W. (1989). Turtles of the World. Washington, District of Columbia: Smithsonian Institution Press. ISBN 978-0-87474-414-9. 313 pp. ISBN 978-1560982128.
  5. ^ Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5. (Staurotypus salvinii, p. 232.)
  6. ^ Badenhorst, Daleen; Stanyon, Roscoe; Engstrom, Tag; Valenzuela, Nicole (2013-04-01). "A ZZ/ZW microchromosome system in the spiny softshell turtle, Apalone spinifera, reveals an intriguing sex chromosome conservation in Trionychidae". Chromosome Research. 21 (2): 137–147. doi:10.1007/s10577-013-9343-2. ISSN 1573-6849. PMID 23512312. S2CID 14434440.
  7. ^ Species Staurotypus salvinii at The Reptile Database www.reptile-database.org.

Further reading

  • Gray JE (1864). "Description of a New Species of Staurotypus (S. salvinii ) from Guatemala". Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London 1864: 127–128.