The Geoemydidae (formerly known as Bataguridae) are one of the largest and most diverse families in the order

Testudines 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 ...

(turtles), with about 70

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 appropriat ...

. The family includes the

Eurasia Eurasia (, ) is the largest continental area on Earth, comprising all of Europe and Asia. Primarily in the Northern and Eastern Hemispheres, it spans from the British Isles and the Iberian Peninsula in the west to the Japanese archipelag ...

n pond and river turtles and

Neotropical The Neotropical realm is one of the eight biogeographic realms constituting Earth's land surface. Physically, it includes the tropical terrestrial ecoregions of the Americas and the entire South American temperate zone. Definition In bioge ...

wood turtles. Members of this family are commonly called Leaf turtle.

Characteristics

Geoemydidae are turtles of various sizes (from about in length) with often a high degree of

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 ...

. They usually have webbed toes, and their pelvic girdles articulate with their plastrons flexibly. Their necks are drawn back vertically. Their

carapace A carapace is a dorsal (upper) section of the exoskeleton or shell in a number of animal groups, including arthropods, such as crustaceans and arachnids, as well as vertebrates, such as turtles and tortoises. In turtles and tortoises, the unde ...

s have 24 marginal

scute A scute or scutum (Latin: ''scutum''; plural: ''scuta'' "shield") is a bony external plate or scale overlaid with horn, as on the shell of a turtle, the skin of crocodilians, and the feet of birds. The term is also used to describe the anterior po ...

s. The plastron is composed of 12 scutes and has no mesoplastron; the pectoral and abdominal scutes contact the marginal scutes. Some other features include a single articulation between the fifth and sixth cervical vertebrae, the lack of a hyomandibular branch of the

facial nerve The facial nerve, also known as the seventh cranial nerve, cranial nerve VII, or simply CN VII, is a cranial nerve that emerges from the pons of the brainstem, controls the muscles of facial expression, and functions in the conveyance of taste ...

, and an epipterygoid bone in the skull.

Ecology

Geoemydidae live in tropics and subtropics of Asia, Europe and

North Africa North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in ...

; the only genus in

Central Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object. Central may also refer to: Directions and generalised locations * Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known a ...

and South America is ''

Rhinoclemmys ''Rhinoclemmys'' is a genus of turtles in the family Geoemydidae (formerly Bataguridae), the only genus in the subfamily Rhinoclemmydinae. Member species of the genus are commonly known as the Neotropical wood turtles and are the only geoemydids ...

''. Their habitats include freshwater ecosystems, coastal marine areas, and tropical forests. Most are

herbivorous A herbivore is an animal anatomically and physiologically adapted to eating plant material, for example foliage or marine algae, for the main component of its diet. As a result of their plant diet, herbivorous animals typically have mouthpar ...

, but some are

omnivorous An omnivore () is an animal that has the ability to eat and survive on both plant and animal matter. Obtaining energy and nutrients from plant and animal matter, omnivores digest carbohydrates, protein, fat, and fiber, and metabolize the nut ...

carnivorous A carnivore , or meat-eater (Latin, ''caro'', genitive ''carnis'', meaning meat or "flesh" and ''vorare'' meaning "to devour"), is an animal or plant whose food and energy requirements derive from animal tissues (mainly muscle, fat and other ...

species. In

mating In biology, mating is the pairing of either opposite- sex or hermaphroditic organisms for the purposes of sexual reproduction. ''Fertilization'' is the fusion of two gametes. ''Copulation'' is the union of the sex organs of two sexually reprod ...

, the males are usually much more active than females. A relatively small number of eggs per

clutch A clutch is a mechanical device that engages and disengages power transmission, especially from a drive shaft to a driven shaft. In the simplest application, clutches connect and disconnect two rotating shafts (drive shafts or line shafts). ...

is common, produced several times a year. Some species have a temperature-dependent sex determination system, while others possess different

sex chromosome A sex chromosome (also referred to as an allosome, heterotypical chromosome, gonosome, heterochromosome, or idiochromosome) is a chromosome that differs from an ordinary autosome in form, size, and behavior. The human sex chromosomes, a typical ...

s; one known species ( ''Siebenrockiella crassicolis'') exhibits XX/XY sex determination, while another species (''

Pangshura smithii The brown roofed turtle (''Pangshura smithii'') is a species of turtle in the family Geoemydidae. The species is endemic to South Asia. Two subspecies are recognized. Etymology The specific name, ''smithii'', is in honor of Scottish zoologi ...

'') exhibits ZZ/ZW sex determination. About 70% of the extant species have been reported to be in

endangered An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching and in ...

or vulnerable condition.

Systematics and evolution

Traditional systematics placed the geoemydids in the family

Emydidae Emydidae (Latin ''emys'' (freshwater tortoise) + Ancient Greek εἶδος (''eîdos'', “appearance, resemblance”)) is a family of testudines (turtles) that includes close to 50 species in 10 genera. Members of this family are commonly calle ...

as the subfamily Batagurinae. In the 1980s, the subfamily was elevated to the family status and renamed to Geoemydidae according to the

ICZN The International Code of Zoological Nomenclature (ICZN) is a widely accepted convention in zoology that rules the formal scientific naming of organisms treated as animals. It is also informally known as the ICZN Code, for its publisher, the I ...

rules. Most

fossil A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserved ...

and

molecular A molecule is a group of two or more atoms held together by attractive forces known as chemical bonds; depending on context, the term may or may not include ions which satisfy this criterion. In quantum physics, organic chemistry, and bio ...

data support their close relationship to the family Testudinidae. The intrafamilial taxonomy is not well established yet, due to the large number and diversity of species. The family is usually divided into two subfamilies and 19

genera 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 nomenclat ...

. Several species are known to give viable hybrids, which makes the systematics even more complicated. (2005): On the hybridisation between two distantly related Asian turtles (Testudines: ''Sacalia'' × ''Mauremys''). ''

Salamandra ''Salamandra'' is a genus of seven species of salamanders localized in central and southern Europe, Northern Africa, and western Asia. List of species References External links Salamandraat Fauna Europaea * Salamandraat Animal Diversity ...

'' 41: 21-26
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Subfamilies and genera

The following genera are classified under Geoemydidae. Turtle Taxonomy Working Group an Dijk , P.P., Iverson, J.B., Shaffer, H.B., Bour, R., and Rhodin, A.G.J. 2012. Turtles of the World, 2012 update: annotated checklist of taxonomy, synonymy, distribution, and conservation status. Chelonian Research Monographs No. 5, pp. 000.243–000.328, doi:10.3854/crm.5.000.checklist.v5.2012, *Family Geoemydidae **Genus '' Banhxeochelys'' **Genus '' Duboisemys'' **Subfamily Geoemydinae ***Genus '' Batagur'' (six species, including part of ''Kachuga'') ***Genus '' Cuora'', Asian box turtle (10 species) (including ''Cistoclemmys'') ***Genus '' Cyclemys'' (seven species) ***Genus '' Geoclemys'' (

monotypic In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unispe ...

genus) ***Genus '' Geoemyda'' (two species) ***Genus '' Hardella'' (monotypic genus) ***Genus ''

Heosemys ''Heosemys'' is a genus of freshwater turtles ("terrapins" in British English) in the family Geoemydidae (formerly called Bataguridae). The genus ''Heosemys'' was split out of the related genus ''Geoemyda'' by McDowell in 1964. Species Four ...

'' (formerly in ''Geoemyda'') ***Genus '' Leucocephalon'' (formerly in ''Geoemyda'' and ''Heosemys'') ***Genus '' Malayemys'' (three species) ***Genus '' Mauremys'', pond turtles (including ''Annamemys'', ''Cathaiemys'' and ''Emmenia'') ***Genus '' Melanochelys'' (two species) ***Genus '' Morenia'' (two species) ***Genus '' Notochelys'' (monotypic genus) ***Genus '' Orlitia'' (monotypic genus) ***Genus '' Pangshura'' (four species) (formerly in ''Kachuga'') ***Genus '' Sacalia'', "eyed" turtles ***Genus '' Siebenrockiella'' (two species, one subgenus ''Panyaenemys'', formerly under ''Heosemys'') ***Genus '' Vijayachelys'', cane turtle (formerly in ''Geoemyda'' and ''Heosemys'') **Subfamily Rhinoclemmydinae ***Genus ''

'', Neotropical wood turtles

Conservation

As of the early 2013, six species of the family Geoemydidae are on the

CITES CITES (shorter name for the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, also known as the Washington Convention) is a multilateral treaty to protect endangered plants and animals from the threats of intern ...

Appendix I, and 30 more are on the treaty's

Appendix II CITES (shorter name for the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, also known as the Washington Convention) is a multilateral treaty to protect endangered plants and animals from the threats of intern ...

. A joint China-US proposal for a March 2013 CITES participants' conference seeks to add 15 more Geoemydidae species to the convention's Appendix II. Dinny McMahon
China Backs Tortoise in Race to Protect Endangered Species
2013-03-04

References

External links

*
Geoemydidae
(all species) a
The Reptile Database
{{Taxonbar , from=Q446640 Turtle families Taxa named by William Theobald