Source:
Senckenberg Research Institute
and Natural History Museum-5/21/14
Summary:
The African
helmeted terrapin Pelomedusa subrufa actually comprises at least 10 different
species, researchers have announced. Until now, it had been considered to
represent a single species, with a distribution spanning most of Africa, Madagascar and Arabia .
The new classification also results in a revised assessment of its conservation
status: at least one of the newly described species is seriously endangered.
Scientists at the
Senckenberg Research Institute revealed that the African helmeted terrapin
Pelomedusa subrufa actually comprises at least 10 different species. Until now,
it had been considered to represent a single species, with a distribution
spanning most of Africa, Madagascar
and Arabia . The new classification also
results in a revised assessment of its conservation status: at least one of the
newly described species is seriously endangered. The underlying studies were
published in the scientific journal Zootaxa.
The African helmeted terrapin Pelomedusa
subrufa prefers small water bodies, but it is also able to survive drought
periods of several years -- by burrowing underground. Reaching a maximum shell
length of 30 cm, these turtles are widely distributed. They are found from South Africa north to the Sahel Zone, in Madagascar and on the Arabian
Peninsula . This wide distribution range and their ability to
survive long periods of drought led to its classification as "not
endangered."
"However, our research shows that
previous assumptions were basically incorrect," says Professor Uwe Fritz,
director at Senckenberg in Dresden .
In cooperation with an international team of scientists, among them researchers
from South Africa and Namibia , he
examined the turtles using morphological methods and the molecular genetic
approaches. "Our results indicate that not one, but at least ten species
are involved in this complex -- and perhaps even more," explains Fritz.
Altogether, the scientists from Dresden examined
approximately 350 turtles, 200 of which underwent genetic testing. Among
others, they also genetically analyzed samples from museum specimens -- some
more than 100 years old.
"Up to now, the African helmeted
terrapin was considered a widely distributed species and, therefore, not
endangered, since it was assumed that the same species occurred throughout Africa . Our research shows that many distinct species are
involved and that the distribution of each species is much more limited,"
says Fritz. "Due to this, some of the species are probably much more
endangered than previously assumed." One of the newly described turtles
may actually be threatened by extinction, due to severe water shortage in its
home on the southwestern Arabian Peninsula .
However, there is also good news at least
for some countries: South
Africa has gained an additional turtle
species. Thanks to the recent split, two species of helmeted terrapins are now
found in the country, one is distributed over most of South Africa , while the second species is
confined to South Africa 's Limpopo province. This even topped by Tanzania , where
three distinct species occur!
Story Source:
The above story is based on materials provided by Senckenberg Research Institute and Natural History Museum.
Note: Materials may be edited for content and length.
Journal References:
- Uwe Fritz, Alice Petzold, Christian
Kehlmaier, Carolin Kindler, Patrick Cambell, Margaretha D. Hofmeyr &
William R. Branch. Disentangling the Pelomedusa complex using type
specimens and historical DNA (Testudines: Pelomedusidae). Zootaxa, 3795
(5): 501%u2013522
- Alice Petzold, Mario Vargas-Ramirez,
Christian Kehlmaier, Melita Vamberger, William R. Branch, Louis du Preez,
Margaretha D. Hofmeyr, Leon Meyer, Alfred Schleicher, Pavel Široky &
Uwe Fritz Zootaxa. A revision of African helmeted terrapins (Testudines:
Pelomedusidae: Pelomedusa), with descriptions of six new species. Zootaxa,
May 2014
No comments:
Post a Comment
You only need to enter your comment once! Comments will appear once they have been moderated. This is so as to stop the would-be comedian who has been spamming the comments here with inane and often offensive remarks. You know who you are!