Mekong snail-eating turtle

See also: Malayemys macrocephala

The Mekong snail-eating turtle (Malayemys subtrijuga) is a species of turtle in the family Geoemydidae. It was monotypic within the genus Malayemys until Brophy (2004, 2005)^[4] reevaluated (based on morphology) Malayemys macrocephala (Gray, 1859),^[5] which has been long time considered to be a synonym of M. subtrijuga.

Mekong snail-eating turtle
Conservation status
Near Threatened  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
CITES Appendix II (CITES)[2]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Testudines
Suborder:	Cryptodira
Superfamily:	Testudinoidea
Family:	Geoemydidae
Genus:	Malayemys
Species:	M. subtrijuga
Binomial name
Malayemys subtrijuga (Schlegel & Müller, 1845:30)[3]
Synonyms
Emys herrmanni Schweigger, 1812:311 nomen dubium Emys subtrijuga Schlegel & Müller, 1845:30 nomen protectum Emys nuchalis Blyth, 1863:82 Damonia crassiceps Gray, 1870:43 Damonia oblonga Gray, 1871:367

Distribution

The Mekong snail-eating turtle is found in the Mekong River basin of Cambodia, Laos, southern Vietnam, and Thailand and the northern Malay Peninsula, and Java, Indonesia.^[4][6] It could have been introduced to Java via human intervention from the Mekong River Basin. The occurrence of the species in Indonesia is regarded by Brophy (2005) to be allochthonous, i.e., non-native (Sumatra) or extinct (Java).^[4] The population of the Mekong snail-eating turtle is declining due to exploitation of the animal and their habitat.

Predators

The Mekong snail-eating turtle is usually eaten by birds, fish, and larger turtles.^[7]