Asian forest tortoise

Asian forest tortoise
Manouria emys from Kaeng Krachan National Park in Thailand
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Testudines
Family: Testudinidae
Genus: Manouria
Species: M. emys
Binomial name
Manouria emys
(Schlegel & Müller, 1844)
Synonyms[1]
Manouria emys emys
  • Testudo emys Schlegel & Müller, 1840
  • Testudo emydoides Duméril & Bibron, 1851
  • Manouria fusca Gray, 1854
  • Teleopus luxatus LeConte, 1854
  • Manouria emydoides Strauch, 1862
  • Manouria emys Strauch, 1862
  • Manouria luxata Strauch, 1862
  • Testudo (Scapia) falconeri Gray, 1869
  • Scapia falconeri Gray, 1870
  • Manuria emys Lydekker, 1889
  • Geochelone emys Loveridge & Williams, 1957
  • Manouria emys emys Obst, 1983
  • Geochelone emys emys Gosławski & Hryniewicz, 1993
  • Testudo emys emys Paull, 1999
Manouria emys phayrei
  • Testudo phayrei Blyth, 1853
  • Testudo (Scapia) falconeri Gray, 1869
  • Scapia falconeri Gray, 1870
  • Scapia phayrei Gray, 1871
  • Testudo nutapundi Reimann, 1979
  • Geochelone nutapundi Groombridge, 1982
  • Manouria emys nutapundi Obst, 1983
  • Manouria emys phayrei Bour, 1984
  • Geochelone emys nutapundi Gosławski & Hryniewicz, 1993
  • Manouria nutapundi Obst, 1996
  • Manouria emys phayeri Paull, 1997
  • Manouria emys phayre Das, 2001 (ex errore)
  • Manouria emys phareyi Ferri, 2002 (ex errore)

Asian forest tortoise (Manouria emys), also known as Asian brown tortoise, is a species of tortoise found in India (Assam), Bangladesh, Burma (or Myanmar), Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia (Sumatra, Borneo).

Manouria emys is believed to be among the most primitive of living tortoises, based on molecular and morphological studies.

Physical Description

The Asian Forest Tortoise is the largest tortoise in mainland Asia. The largest adults of the northern subspecies, Manouria emys phayrei, can reach 25 kg in the wild and much more than that in captivity.

The shell is considerably depressed, its depth not half its length; anterior and posterior margins reverted, more or less strongly serrated; nuchal present; two supracaudal shields; dorsal shields concentrically striated, often concave; vertebrals much broader than long and at least as broad as costals. Plastron large, gular region somewhat produced and usually notched, hind lobe deeply notched; the pectoral shields may be widely separated from each other, or from a short median suture; axillary shield very small, inguinal large. Head moderate; two large prefrontal shields and a large frontal; beak not hooked; jaws feebly denticulated, the alveolar surface of the upper jaw with a strong median ridge. Forelimb anteriorly with very large, bony, pointed, imbricate tubercles, forming four or five longitudinal series; hind limb with very large bony tubercles on the plantar surface, with others larger, conical, and spur-like on the heel, and a group of still larger conical tubercles on each side on the back of the thighs. Adult dark brown or blackish; carapace of young yellowish brown, with dark-brown markings.

Reproduction

Manouria emys is the only tortoise which lays its eggs above ground in a nest, which the female constructs of leaf litter. The female uses both front and rear legs to gather material for the nest and lays up to 50 eggs deep inside it. She then sits on and near the nest to protect it, and will 'chase' predators and intruders away.[2]

Subspecies

Cited references

  1. ↑ Fritz Uwe; Peter Havaš (2007). "Checklist of Chelonians of the World". Vertebrate Zoology 57 (2): 288. ISSN 1864-5755. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2010-12-17. Retrieved 29 May 2012.
  2. ↑ Boulenger, G.A.(1890) Fauna of British India. Reptilia and Batrachia.

Other references

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Tuesday, April 19, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.