Travancore tortoise
Species of tortoise
Travancore tortoise | |
---|---|
Adult in the Anaimalai Hills | |
Conservation status | |
Vulnerable (IUCN 2.3) | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Reptilia |
Order: | Testudines |
Suborder: | Cryptodira |
Superfamily: | Testudinoidea |
Family: | Testudinidae |
Genus: | Indotestudo |
Species: | I. travancorica |
Binomial name | |
Indotestudo travancorica (Boulenger, 1907) | |
Synonyms[1] | |
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The Travancore tortoise (Indotestudo travancorica)[2] is a large forest tortoise growing up to 330 millimetres (13 in) in length. The species was first described by George Albert Boulenger in 1907. It primarily feeds on grasses and herbs. It also feeds on molluscs, insects, animal carcass, fungi and fruits. It occurs in hill forests at 450–850 m elevation. Males combat by ramming their shell during their breeding season between November and March. It makes a shallow nest in the ground and lay 1 to 5 eggs. Hatchlings are 55–60 mm in size. The tortoise is hunted and it is threatened due to forest fires, habitat destruction and fragmentation.
- Identification: a scute right behind the head is absent and the second scute along the vertebral column is located at the highest point of the shell.
- Status: IUCN Red list - vulnerable; Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act: Schedule IV.
- Distribution: restricted to the Western Ghats, in the Indian states of Kerala, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.
- Vernacular names:
- Tamil: periya amai, kal amai
- Kadas: vengala amai
- Kannada: betta aame, gudde aame, kadu aame
- Malayalam: kattu aama
References
- ^ Fritz Uwe; Peter Havaš (2007). "Checklist of Chelonians of the World". Vertebrate Zoology. 57 (2): 284–285. doi:10.3897/vz.57.e30895. ISSN 1864-5755.
- ^ "ARKive - Travancore tortoise videos, photos and facts - Indotestudo travancorica". Archived from the original on 21 December 2010. Retrieved 13 December 2010.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Indotestudo travancorica.
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Tortoise family
- Kingdom: Animalia
- Phylum: Chordata
- Class: Reptilia
- Subclass: Anapsida
- Order: Testudines
- Suborder: Cryptodira
- Superfamily: Testudinoidea
- Family: Testudinidae
Species of the tortoise family |
- Aldabra giant tortoise (subspecies:
- A. g. arnoldi
- †A. g. daudinii
- A. g. hololissa)
- †Aldabrachelys abrupta
- †Aldabrachelys grandidieri
- Chaco tortoise
- Red-footed tortoise
- Yellow-footed tortoise
- †Chelonoidis alburyorum
- †Chelonoidis cubensis
- †Chelonoidis lutzae
- †Chelonoidis monensis
- †Chelonoidis sellovii
- †Chelonoidis sombrerensis
- Cerro Azul giant tortoise
- Chatham Island giant tortoise
- Eastern Santa Cruz tortoise
- Fernandina Island tortoise
- †Floreana Island tortoise
- Hood Island giant tortoise (Diego)
- Santa Fe Island tortoise
- †Pinta Island tortoise †(Lonesome George)
- Santiago Island giant tortoise
- Pinzón Island giant tortoise
- Sierra Negra giant tortoise
- Volcán Alcedo giant tortoise
- Volcán Darwin giant tortoise
- Volcán Wolf giant tortoise
- Western Santa Cruz tortoise
- †Cheirogaster bacharidisi
- †Cheirogaster gymnesica
- †Cheirogaster schafferi
- †Hadrianus corsoni
- †Hadrianus majusculus
- †Hadrianus octonaria
- †Hadrianus robustus
- †Hadrianus schucherti
- †Hadrianus utahensis
- †Hadrianus vialovi
- Elongated tortoise
- Forsten's tortoise
- Travancore tortoise
- †Stylemys botti
- †Stylemys calaverensis
- †Stylemys canetotiana
- †Stylemys capax
- †Stylemys conspecta
- †Stylemys copei
- †Stylemys emiliae
- †Stylemys frizaciana
- †Stylemys karakolensis
- †Stylemys nebrascensis
- †Stylemys neglectus
- †Stylemys oregonensis
- †Stylemys pygmea
- †Stylemys uintensis
- †Stylemys undabuna
- Hermann's tortoise
- Kleinmann's tortoise
- Marginated tortoise
- Spur-thighed tortoise
- †Testudo brevitesta
Phylogenetic arrangement of turtles based on turtles of the world 2017 update: Annotated checklist and atlas of taxonomy, synonymy, distribution, and conservation status. Key: †=extinct.