Wattle-necked softshell turtle

The wattle-necked softshell turtle (Palea steindachneri), also commonly known as Steindachner's soft-shelled turtle,^[6] is an endangered Asian species of softshell turtle in the family Trionychidae. The species is the only member of the genus Palea.^[3]

Wattle-necked softshell turtle
Conservation status
Critically Endangered  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
CITES Appendix II (CITES)[2]
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Testudines
Suborder:	Cryptodira
Family:	Trionychidae
Subfamily:	Trionychinae
Genus:	Palea Meylan, 1987 [3]
Species:	P. steindachneri
Binomial name
Palea steindachneri (Siebenrock, 1906)[3]
Synonyms[4][5]
List Aspidonectes californiana Rivers, 1889 (nomen suppressum) Pelodiscus californianus — Baur, 1893 Aspidonectes californiensis [sic] O.P. Hay, 1904 (ex errore) Trionyx steindachneri Siebenrock, 1906 (nomen conservandum) Amyda steindachneri — K.P. Schmidt, 1927 Palea steindachneri — Meylan, 1987 Trionix steindachneri — Richard, 1999 Pelodiscus steindachneri — Pritchard, 2001 Palea steindachneri — Ziegler, 2002

Description

P. steindachneri exhibits sexual dimorphism. Females of this freshwater turtle reach up to 44.5 cm (17.5 in) in straight carapace length, while males only reach up to 36 cm (14 in). However, males have a longer tail than the females.^[7]

In Hong Kong

Etymology

The specific name, steindachneri, is in honor of Austrian herpetologist Franz Steindachner.^[6]

Geographic range

P. steindachneri is native to southeastern China (Guangdong, Guangxi, Guizhou, Hainan, Yunnan), Laos, and Vietnam, but has also been introduced to Hawaii and Mauritius.^[3]

Threats

P. steindachneri is endangered by poaching for human consumption. Although pressure on the wild population continues, several thousand are hatched and raised each year on turtle farms in China and Vietnam for food and traditional medicine.^[8][9]