Mauremys reevesii (Gray, 1831)

Kaiser, Hinrich, Carvalho, Venancio Lopes, Ceballos, Jester, Freed, Paul, Heacox, Scott, Lester, Barbara, Richards, Stephen J., Trainor, Colin R., Sanchez, Caitlin & O'Shea, Mark, 2011, The herpetofauna of Timor-Leste: a first report, ZooKeys 109, pp. 19-86 : 48-49

Mauremys reevesii (Gray, 1831) Fig. 29

Common names.

(E) Reeves’ Stripe-necked Turtle, Chinese Pond Turtle. *(T) Lenuk kakorok riskadu (lenuk = turtle, riskadu = striped, kakorok = neck).

Identification.

Chinese pond turtles are readily identified by the characteristic yellow striping and blotching on their necks ( Fig. 29 ).

Collection and natural history.

The staff at the Albergaria Planalto, New Town Baucau, became aware of our purpose in collecting specimens of amphibians and reptiles and showed us an unidentified turtle that was kept in a small, stone-encased pond on the grounds of the property. We were told that there were three turtles like this in the area, one collected near Dili, and the two others just across the street in an empty lot at the edge of town. Two of these had escaped by the time of our arrival, but we were able to obtain this specimen as a voucher. The presence of Mauremys reevesii was briefly mentioned by McCord et al. (2007), and we reported details regarding its presence in Timor-Leste elsewhere ( Kaiser et al. 2010).

Figures

Figure 29. Mauremys reevesii. Male individual of the introduced Chinese pond turtle from the Albergaria Planalto in New Town Baucau, Baucau District. Photo by Mark O'Shea.