Western Swamp Turtle

(Pseudemydura umbrina)


Facts

Western Swamp Turtle IUCN CRITICALLY ENDANGERED (CR)

 

Facts about this animal

The Western Swamp Turtle is the smallest of the Australian short-necked chelid turtles. The average carapace length is about 13 cm. The head is very broad, flat and rounded. There are large horny conical tubercles on the short neck and a pair of small barbells on the chin. The neck is only retractable in horizontal plane. The carapace is wide and flat, and greyish-brown, or yellowish-brown to black in colour. The plastron is extremely large, pale yellow to pale olive, with dark pigmentation bordering the scutes.

Did you know?
that the western swamp turtle is the most endangered Australian reptile species? Between 1963 and 2001 the numbers of tortoises known to be alive in the wild has fluctuated between 40 and 120.


 

Factsheet
Class REPTILIA
Order TESTUDINES
Suborder PLEURODIRA
Family CHELIDAE
Name (Scientific) Pseudemydura umbrina
Name (English) Western Swamp Turtle
Name (French) Pseudémydure de Perth
Name (German) Falsche Spitzkopfschildkröte
Name (Spanish) Tortuga occidental de cuello de serpiente
CITES Status Appendix I
CMS Status Not listed

 

 

Photo Copyright by
Perth Zoo

Distribution

 


Distribution
Range Western Australia (near Perth)
Habitat Shallow, temporary swamps
Wild population Approx. 130
Zoo population 252 reported to ISIS (2005)

In the Zoo

Western Swamp Turtle

 

How this animal should be transported

For air transport, Container Note 43 of the IATA Live Animals Regulations should be followed.

 

Find this animal on ZooLex

 

Photo Copyright by
Perth Zoo

Why do zoos keep this animal

The western swamp turtle is critically endangered in the wild. Without a conservation breeding programme and significant efforts to restock the population this tortoise was likely to have become extinct.