Update to ID request

[lvstorts]

After 4 hours of driving and 3 other people involved in transporting the 'mystery turtle' he's arrive safe and is settling in. He's a he, very shy. I took more pictures after I cleaned him up a bit. He had quite a lot of caked on dried algae on his shell. Weights 13 ounces.

Thanks all.

 

[Yvonne G]

I hold with my original I.D.

 

[Moozillion]

What a sweet face!

 

[bouaboua]

I hold with my original I.D.

Which was????

 

[Maggie Cummings]

African Sideneck. I love that face....

 

[leigti]

He's very cute whatever he is.

 

[bouaboua]

African Sideneck. I love that face....

Thank you my Lady! ! !

 

[Maggie Cummings]

Pelusios subniger

 

[bouaboua]

Pelusios subniger

Now I'm lost, when you talking Latin..........You are too smart for me! ! !

 

[Anthony P]

Can anyone justify why they think it's subniger and not another of the Pelusios?

 

[TortsNTurtles]

They are so cute. Congrats on your new turtle.

 

[lvstorts]

They are so cute. Congrats on your new turtle.

Thanks but he'll be up for adoption as soon as I feel he's ready. I'm not set up for water turtles!

 

[tglazie]

I second Anthony's point. How do we know, definitively, that this little fella (lady?) is in fact a P. subniger? I mean, it looks a lot like an African Helmeted turtle to me, a Pelomedusa, but I know as much about African muds and sidenecks as I do about African Hingebacks, or variations within the Mauremys complex from Europe to Asia, which is next to nothing.

T.G.

 

[leigti]

I know nothing about any of the species. Are the different species you guys discussing from different areas? Do they require different care? If so it is important but if not it might not be as important.

 

[TortsNTurtles]

I like both but I have been wanting an African Helmeted turtle !!

 

[leigti]

I like both but I have been wanting an African Helmeted turtle !!

Okay I understand now. I wasn't quite sure what the big deal was unless the care was different. Like I said I don't know these kinds of turtles. It is very cute though whatever it is.

 

[TortsNTurtles]

Okay I understand now. I wasn't quite sure what the big deal was unless the care was different. Like I said I don't know these kinds of turtles. It is very cute though whatever it is.

I have read sites that say the African helmeted turtle only gets 5"-6" and others state 8" to 20" which would make a big difference with tank size needed as an adult.They are both cute.There is a cute African sideneck baby at my local Petsmart that has been for sale for a while. I try to avoid looking at him they are so cute. I love that face on both the African sidenecks and helmeted turtles. They are both supposed to be hardy and a great beginner turtle when set up right.

 

[leigti]

Yes, 6 inches and 20 inches is a big difference.

 

[Maggie Cummings]

Can anyone justify why they think it's subniger and not another of the Pelusios?

Sorry Anthony....I just looked it up in one of my reptile books and that's what it said. But I don't think it's a mud turtle, just an African Sideneck......

 

[Anthony P]

It is an African Sideneck AND an African Mud Turtle. Those are just common names, and we know how confusing those can be.

The reason why I asked why was that the Pelusios genus is really tough. It's like trying to determine the subspecies of the Emys genus (European Pond Turtles) just from looks.

Truth is, taxonomy is determined by genetics more than anything now. That means that a lot of time, morphological clues you can get from photos might be largely unreliable, especially if you're dealing with a uniques specimen within their species.

Sometimes, there can be little tell-tale signs to help tell the species apart, but there aren't easy ones with Pelusios. That's why I asked. I think it's safest just to assume this is one of the more common Pelusios species in the pet trade here.