''Kinixys'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nom ...

turtle Turtles are an order of reptiles known as Testudines, characterized by a special shell developed mainly from their ribs. Modern turtles are divided into two major groups, the Pleurodira (side necked turtles) and Cryptodira (hidden necked t ...

s in the

family Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

Testudinidae. The genus was erected by Thomas Bell in 1827. The

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

in the genus ''Kinixys'' are native to Sub-Saharan Africa and

Madagascar Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Africa ...

and commonly known as hinged tortoises or hinge-back tortoises. Most of the ''Kinixys'' species are omnivores. They feed mainly on a wide range of different leaves, weeds, roots, flowers and fruits. However, they also eat worms, insects and other small

invertebrates Invertebrates are a paraphyletic group of animals that neither possess nor develop a vertebral column (commonly known as a ''backbone'' or ''spine''), derived from the notochord. This is a grouping including all animals apart from the chordat ...

Species

The following species are recognised in the genus ''Kinixys'': *''Kinixys belliana'' –

Bell's hinge-back tortoise Bell's hinge-back tortoise (''Kinixys belliana''), also known commonly as Bell's eastern hinged tortoise, is a species of tortoise in the family Testudinidae. The species is native to central Africa. It has the hinge that characterizes all tort ...

*''Kinixys erosa'' – forest hinge-back tortoise *''Kinixys homeana'' – Home's hinge-back tortoise *''Kinixys lobatsiana'' – Lobatse hinge-back tortoise *''Kinixys natalensis'' – Natal hinge-back tortoise *'' Kinixys nogueyi'' *''Kinixys spekii'' – Speke's hinge-back tortoise *'' Kinixys zombensis'' ''

Nota bene (, or ; plural form ) is a Latin phrase meaning "note well". It is often abbreviated as NB, n.b., or with the ligature and first appeared in English writing . In Modern English, it is used, particularly in legal papers, to draw the atten ...

'': A

binomial authority In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bot ...

in parentheses indicates that the species was originally described in a genus other than ''Kinixys''. Three species of ''Kinixys'': ''K. nogueyi'', ''K. erosa'', ''K. homeana''. (Illustration G. Aeschimann).

Distribution and habitat

The several species of the genus ''Kinxys'' are found across much of tropical and sub-tropical sub-Saharan Africa, ranging as far south as KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa, and as far north as the fringes of the Sahel and Sahara. However, individuals are often very scarce within this range, and several species are threatened. Though the species' wide geographic ranges overlap considerably, they are separated from each other by favouring different habitats within this range. Some species (such as ''K. belliana'') favour open savannah or grasslands, others (such as ''K. homeana'') favour rainforest.

Parasites

Species of tortoises in the

''Kinixys'' play host to a number of ectoparasites (external) and endoparasites (internal). A survey (by Alan Probert & Clive Humphreys) of mixed captive ''K. spekii'' and ''K. belliana'' (mostly ''K. spekii'') in Zimbabwe showed that the following parasites were known to infest/infect this species. This had been observed and published by others too. However some of the tiny roundworms (photographed under scanning electron microscope) are very likely new species and as yet remain undescribed. *Ticks (Arachnida) *Roundworms (Nematoda) – ''Angusticium'', ''Atractis'' and ''Tachygontria''

Species

Distribution and habitat

Parasites

References

Further reading