Cuora picturata

(Lehr, Fritz & Obst, 1998)

Vernacular names
English : South Vietnam box turtle
French : Tortue boite du sud du Vietnam

Classification
Class : Reptilia
Order : Testudines
Family : Geoemydidae
Notes : No subspecies known.

Identification
Adults can reach a carapace length of 20 cm for a weight around 1.2 kg. Most domed shell of the genus. Coloration is yellow on sides with black mottling. Brown-black back with yellow stripe. Head and neck clear yellow with grey speckles.

Range and habitat
This species occurs in South East Asia and is endemic to southern Vietnam, being restricted to the eastern slopes of the Langbian plateau. Lives in upland evergreen forests mixed with bamboo forest , to 700 meters.

Conservation
IUCN RED LIST : CRITICALLY ENDANGERED
CITES : Appendix I
Status : The species has been collected to near extinction for food and pet trade. More than 90% of the wild population is gone, not seen in the wild by scientists in recent times.
Ex-Situ Programs : SSP in America, EEP in Europe

Observation

 

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