Brown wood turtle

The brown wood turtle or brown land turtle (Rhinoclemmys annulata) is a species of turtle in the family Geoemydidae. The species is endemic to Central America and northern South America.

Brown wood turtle
Illustration of Rhinoclemmys annulata
by G.H. Ford
from Gray's original description.
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Testudines
Suborder: Cryptodira
Superfamily: Testudinoidea
Family: Geoemydidae
Genus: Rhinoclemmys
Species:
R. annulata
Binomial name
Rhinoclemmys annulata
(Gray, 1860)
Synonyms[2]
  • Geoclemmys annulata
    Gray, 1860
  • Clemmys annulata
    — Strauch, 1862
  • Rhinoclemys (Callopsis) annulata
    — Gray, 1863
  • Chelopus annulatus
    — Cope, 1865
  • Rhinoclemmys annulata
    — Gray, 1870
  • Chelopus gabbii
    Cope, 1876
  • Emys gabbi [sic]
    Günther, 1885 (ex errore)
  • Nicoria annulata
    — Boulenger, 1889
  • Nicoria gabbii
    — Boulenger, 1889
  • Geoemyda annulata
    — Siebenrock, 1909
  • Geoemyda gabbii
    — Siebenrock, 1909
  • Rhinoclemmys gabbii
    — Allee, 1926
  • Geoamyda annulata
    — Park, Barden & Williams, 1940
  • Geoemyda annulaia [sic]
    Medem, 1958 (ex errore)
  • Geoemyda gabbi
    — Pritchard, 1967
  • Callopsis annulata
    — H.M. Smith, R.B. Smith &
    Sawin, 1976
  • Rhinoclemmys angulata [sic]
    Highfield, 1996 (ex errore)

Taxonomy

R. annulata is one of nine species of turtles in the genus Rhinoclemmys.

Geographic range

R. annulata is found in Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Panama.[3]

Lifestyle

Little is known about reproduction and lifestyle. The male drool during the courtship on the female's head. A laying consists of only one or two eggs that are approximately 3.5 by 7 centimeters long. When the young turtles crawl out of the egg, they are already relatively large and have a shield length of approximately 6.3 cm.

The brown tortoise is a herbivore that feeds on parts of plants such as leaves and various seeds. The turtle is day active, with a peak in the morning and also after heavy rainfall there is an increased activity. At night the turtle hides among the leaves, while the water is sought to cool down in the heat.

References
  1. Tortoise & Freshwater Turtle Specialist Group (1996). Rhinoclemmys annulata. Version=2011.2 Archived 27 June 2014 at the Wayback Machine IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Downloaded on 8 June 2012.
  2. Fritz, Uwe; Havaš, Peter (2007). "Checklist of Chelonians of the World" (PDF). Vertebrate Zoology. 57 (2): 241–242. ISSN 1864-5755. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 December 2010. Retrieved 29 May 2012.
  3. Rhinoclemmys annulata. The Reptile Database. www.reptile-database.org.

Further reading
  • Boulenger GA (1889). Catalogue of the Chelonians, Rhynchocephalians, and Crocodiles in the British Museum (Natural History). New Edition. London: Trustees of the British Museum (Natural History). (Taylor and Francis, printers). x + 311 pp. + Plates I–III. (Nicoria annulata and N. gabbii, p. 126).
  • Gray JE (1860). "Description of a New Species of Geoclemmys from Ecuador". Proc. Zool. Soc. London 1860: 231–132 + Plate XXIX. (Geoclemmys annulata, new species).
  • Mittermeier RA (1971). "Notes on the behavior and ecology of Rhinoclemmys annulata Gray". Herpetologica 27 (4): 485–488.
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