Nicaraguan slider

Nicaraguan slider
Trachemys emolli
Not evaluated (IUCN 2.3)[1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Class: Reptilia
Subclass: Anapsida
Order: Testudines
Family: Emydidae
Genus: Trachemys
Species: T. emolli
Binomial name
Trachemys emolli
(Legler, 1990)[1]
Synonyms[2]
  • Pseudemys scripta emolli
    Legler, 1990
  • Trachemys scripta emolli
    — Iverson, 1992
  • Trachemys ornata emolli
    — Walls, 1996
  • Trachemys emolli — Seidel, 2002
  • Trachemys venusta emolli
    — Artner, 2003

The Nicaraguan slider (Trachemys emolli )[1] is a species of turtle found in Nicaragua and Costa Rica. Formerly it was considered a subspecies of Trachemys scripta, but was elevated to its own species level.[1]

Etymology

The specific name, emolli, is in honor of American herpetologist Edward Moll (E. Moll).[3]

Geographic range

Nicaraguan sliders are native to Nicaragua and Costa Rica in places such as Lake Nicaragua, Lake Managua, and the lakes and streams that connect them. [4]

Characteristics

Plastron of Trachemys emolli

The Nicaraguan slider has a carapace with many circular markings on it, and in the middle of each markng, there is a dark spot. The main color of the carapace and the turtle's skin is olive green to dark brown. It also has yellow markings on it as well. The supratemporal markings can be orange, pink, or yellow. Males averagely grow to 8–12 in (20–30 cm), and females can averagely grow to 15 in (38 cm) or larger. [4]

Biology

Nicaraguan sliders like their water to be around mid-70s to 80 degrees Fahrenheit. As far as basking goes, they like their basking areas to be in the high 80s to mid-90s degrees Fahrenheit.[4]

Diet

In the wild, the juvenile turtles eat the following: tadpoles, crustaceans, fish, insects and insect larvae.[4]

Breeding

Their nesting season ranges from about the month of December to May. Females are can lay several clutches per season with up to thirty-five eggs per clutch. The hatchlings emerge about 69 to 123 days after the eggs have been deposited.[4]

Subspecies

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Rhodin 2010, p. 000.103
  2. Fritz, Uwe; Havaš, Peter. (2007). "Checklist of Chelonians of the World". Vertebrate Zoology 57 (2): 204–205. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2010-12-17. Retrieved 29 May 2012.
  3. Beolens B, Watkins M, Grayson M. (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5. )Trachemys emolli, p. 83).
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 "Trachemys emolli / Nicaraguan Slider Care Sheet". B and H Turtle Site. Retrieved 3 January 2013.
Bibliography
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