Facts about African Helmeted Turtle
The African helmeted turtle is also known as the Marsh Terrapin. They perform interesting courtship rituals. During courtship, the male will follow the female and extend his head touching her hindquarters and vent. If she is non-responsive he will nip and snap at her legs and tail. After mounting her carapace, he extends his head over hers swaying it in front of her face while expelling water from his nose. It is typically a rather small turtle with most individuals being less than 20 cm in carapace length One African helmeted turtle has been recorded with a carapace length of 32.5 cm(normally it is less than 20 cm). It also has two small tubercles under the chin and musk glands in the sides of the carapace. The African helmeted turtle doesn't have a hinged plastron (lower shell). All the other species in the family Pelomedusidae however have this feature which they can, using muscles, close to cover their head and front limbs. The female African helmeted turtle lays 13 to 16 eggs on average, however this can go up to as many as 40. The size of their eggs average 1.5 by 0.9 in. They incubate their eggs for around 75 to 110 days. The tops of their tail and limbs are a grayish brown, while the underside is yellowish. The male turtle is distinguished by its long, thick tail. Females tend to have a shorter tail and a broader carapace. Their hatchlings have a shell size of about 1 and 1/4 inches in length, and are olive to black in color. The African helmeted turtle is omnivorous and will eat almost anything. Some of the main items in its diet are insects, small crustaceans, fish, earthworms, and snails. |
SEARCH
Sponsors
Related Links |