Amboina box turtle
Adult C. a. amboinensis from Sulawesi
CITES Appendix II (CITES)[2]
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Testudines
Suborder: Cryptodira
Superfamily: Testudinoidea
Family: Geoemydidae
Genus: Cuora
Species:
C. amboinensis
Binomial name
Cuora amboinensis
Daudin, 1802
Synonyms[3]
Cuora amboinensis amboinensis
  • Testudo amboinensis Daudin, 1801
  • Testudo melanocephala Daudin, 1801
  • Emys amboinensis Schweigger, 1812
  • Emys melanocephala Schweigger, 1812
  • Terrapene amboinensis Merrem, 1820
  • Kinosternon amboinense Bell, 1825 (ex errore)
  • Cistuda amboinensis Gray, 1830
  • Clemmys (Clemmys) melanocephala Fitzinger, 1835
  • Cuora amboinensis Gray, 1856
  • Cistudo amboinensis Boulenger, 1889
  • Cyclemys amboinensis Boulenger, 1889
  • Cuora ambionensis Goldsmith, Proctor, Cole & Dadd, 1969 (ex errore)
  • Cuora amboiensis Nutaphand, 1979 (ex errore)
  • Cuora amboinensis amboinensis Rummler & Fritz, 1991
Cuora amboinensis couro
  • Emys couro Schweigger, 1812
  • Terrapene bicolor Bell, 1825
  • Terrapene couro Fitzinger, 1826
  • Emys cuoro Mertens & Wermuth, 1955 (ex errore)
  • Cuora amboinensis couro Rummler & Fritz, 1991
  • Cuora amboinensis cuoro Das, 1995
Cuora amboinensis kamaroma
  • Terrapene bicolor Bell, 1825
  • Cuora amboinensis kamaroma Rummler & Fritz, 1991
  • Cuora amboinensis kanzaroma Artner, 2003 (ex errore)
Cuora amboinensis lineata
  • Cuora amboinensis lineata McCord & Philippen, 1998

The Amboina box turtle or Southeast Asian box turtle (Cuora amboinensis) is a species of Asian box turtle widely distributed across Southeast Asia. It is native to the Asian mainland from northeast India, through Bangladesh, Burma and Thailand, across Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, and Malaysia. It is also found on the archipelagos of Indonesia and the Philippines.

The type locality is "Amboine" (or "Amboina") Island, today Ambon Island in Indonesia.

Description

These turtles have blackish-brown to olive-brown shells that are not as ornate as many other box turtles. All have a blackish olive head with three yellow stripes on the side.[4] They are relatively small turtles, ranging in length between 200-250mm depending on subspecies and sex. Females are slightly larger than males.[5] The male can be identified by the slightly concave shape to its plastron. There is no specific pattern to what the underbellies may look like, for either sex. Life expectancy is 25-30 years. The only true way of telling age is to guess by the texture of the shell, as growth rings form irregularly.[6]

Distribution and habitat

The Amboina box turtle is widely distributed across Southeast Asia. Its range extends on the Asian mainland from northeast India, through Bangladesh, Burma and Thailand, across Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, and Malaysia. It is also found on the archipelagos of Indonesia and the Philippines. The Amboina prefers lowland freshwater habitats from sea level up to about 500 meters and can be found in both natural and human-modified landscapes. It prefers still or slow-moving waters with a soft bottom including ponds, creeks, marshes, rice paddies, irrigation canals and drainage ditches. They are semi-aquatic and tend to spend more time on land at night; the young are more aquatic than adults. Amboina turtles do not migrate but individuals may wander substantial distances during their lifetime.[5]

Ecology and behavior

The Amboina is omnivorous but tends toward a more vegetarian diet. On land it eats plants, fruits, seeds, fungi and worms; in the water it consumes plants, insects and mollusks. The species has been observed to contribute to seed dispersal for fig trees and other tropical plants.[5][6]

Mating takes place between November and April after a brief courtship ritual. Typically, the female will lay three small clutches of two eggs each year and incubation may take anywhere 70 to 100 days. Eggs are elongate, brittle and hard-shelled. The variability in clutch size, egg size and egg-laying season relate to geographic variability and climate.[5]

Taxonomy

There are four subspecies that are primarily differentiated by differences in the color and shape of the carapace:[7]

Has a quite flat shell with flared marginal scutes. The plastron has bigger black spots, and it possesses a bigger head; well adapted for an aquatic lifestyle. For individuals suspected to be of this subspecies: Ratio of carapace length / height: 3.08. Average ratio dimensions of plastron spots: 1.21 (almost circular)
  • Cuora amboinensis couro (West Indonesian box turtle) (Schweigger, 1812)[8] – south Indonesian islands: Sumatra, Java, Bali and Sumbawa.
Moderately domed carapace, some individuals possess flared marginal scutes. The plastron shows black markings on every plastral scute. Darker in coloration, more oval black spots on the plastron.
High domed carapace and smaller, more elongated plastron with less black spots than the other subspecies. It has a smaller and shorter tail compared to the other subspecies and does not have any flares in the marginal scutes. Average ratio of carapace length / height: 2.82. Average ratio dimensions of plastron spots: 2.14 (small and elongated)
  • Cuora amboinensis lineata (Burmese box turtle) McCord & Philippen, 1998[8] – Myanmar.
Resembles Cuora amboinensis kamaroma, but in the carapace there is a bright colored mid-dorsal line, and sometimes a bright colored lateral line. The plastral scutes possess large black spots similar to Cuora amboinensis couro.

Several distinct populations are believed to represent up to four more subspecies, or at least striking varieties.[9]

C. a. kamaroma has hybridized in captivity with the Vietnamese pond turtle – a species nearly extinct in the wild – and with males of the Chinese pond turtle (Chinemys reevesii).[10] Other hybrids are known, like C. amboinensis × Cuora trifasciata.[9]

Conservation status

Once common across much of its range, the Amboina box turtle has undergone a rapid population decline in many areas. In 2020 it was classified as Endangered by the IUCN. The primary threat is capture for local consumption, export to China for food and traditional medicine, and export for the pet trade in the United States and Europe.[5] Although it is adaptable to human-modified landscapes, habitat destruction is still considered a threat in some areas.

Notes

  1. ↑ Cota, M.; Hoang, H.; Horne, B.D.; Kusrini, M.D.; McCormack, T.; Platt, K.; Schoppe, S.; Shepherd, C. (2020). "Cuora amboinensis". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2020: e.T5958A3078812. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-2.RLTS.T5958A3078812.en. Retrieved 19 November 2021.
  2. ↑ "Appendices | CITES". cites.org. Retrieved 14 January 2022.
  3. ↑ Fritz Uwe; Peter Havaš (2007). "Checklist of Chelonians of the World". Vertebrate Zoology. 57 (2): 214–215. doi:10.3897/vz.57.e30895. S2CID 87809001.
  4. ↑ Slepetski, Lisa. "Cuora amboinensisAmboina Box Turtle; Southeast Asian Box Turtle". Animal Diversity Web (ADW). Retrieved 28 December 2023.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 Shoppe & Das 2011.
  6. 1 2 Slepetski 2000.
  7. ↑ Filella (1997); measurements taken at the LCRC 2006-SEP-20.
  8. 1 2 3 Cuora amboinensis, The Reptile Database
  9. 1 2 Vetter & Van Dijk (2006)
  10. ↑ Fritz & Mendau (2002), Galgon & Fritz (2002), Buskirk et al. (2005)

References

Further reading

  • Cuora amboinensis kamaroma, Rui Pessoa, May 2007, Lisbon, Portugal
  • Becker, H. (1999): Ergänzende Bemerkungen zur Haltung und zur Nachzucht von Cuora flavomarginata (Gray 1863) ["Additional remarks on captive care and breeding of C. flavomarginata"]. Elaphe 7 (3): 2–10 [Article in German].
  • Ernst, C.H. (1988): Cuora mccordi, a new Chinese box turtle from Guangxi Province. Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington 101: 466–470.
  • Pauler, I. (1980): Die Schildkrötengattung Cuora ["The turtle genus Curoa"]. Herpetofauna 2 (6): 15–18 [Article in German].
  • Praedicow, G. (1985): Langjährige Erfahrungen bei der Pflege von Cuora amboinensis (Daudin) ["Long-term experiences in captive care of C. amboinensis"]. Herpetofauna 7 (36): 6–14 [Article in German].
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