The red-necked pond turtle (''Mauremys nigricans'') is a species of

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

Geoemydidae The Geoemydidae (formerly known as Bataguridae) are one of the largest and most diverse families in the order Testudines (turtles), with about 70 species. The family includes the Eurasian pond and river turtles and Neotropical wood turtles. Mem ...

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...

to China. It is most likely restricted to Guangxi and

Guangdong Guangdong (, ), alternatively romanized as Canton or Kwangtung, is a coastal province in South China on the north shore of the South China Sea. The capital of the province is Guangzhou. With a population of 126.01 million (as of 2020) ...

provinces, although pre-historic skull remains have been found in northern

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...

and

Hainan Hainan (, ; ) is the smallest and southernmost province of the People's Republic of China (PRC), consisting of various islands in the South China Sea. , the largest and most populous island in China,The island of Taiwan, which is slightly l ...

. Other common names include Kwangtung river turtle and black-necked pond turtle.

Anatomy and morphology

A megacephalic form of the red-necked pond turtle exists, commonly called 'dumb-head'. This form is rarer than the smaller headed individuals. This species has strong

sexual dimorphism Sexual dimorphism is the condition where the sexes of the same animal and/or plant species exhibit different morphological characteristics, particularly characteristics not directly involved in reproduction. The condition occurs in most an ...

with a significant size difference between males and females. The largest recorded male's carapace measured 185mm (7.2 in) in length whereas females with a size up to 298 mm (11.7 in) have been found.

References

* Asian Turtle Trade Working Group 2000.
''Chinemys nigricans''

2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
Downloaded on 29 July 2007. ;Bibliography * {{Taxonbar, from=Q305926 Reptiles of China Chinemys Reptiles described in 1834 Taxonomy articles created by Polbot Endangered Fauna of China