Spotted Pond Turtle
Context:
Three persons engaged as mahouts in the Kaziranga National Park and Tiger Reserve have been arrested for capturing and consuming a rare species of a freshwater turtle- Spotted Pond Turtle.
About Spotted Pond Turtle:
- Common Names: Black Pond Turtle, Black Spotted Turtle, Hamilton’s Terrapin
- Distribution:
- The species is found in north and north-eastern Indian subcontinent primarily in India, Pakistan, Nepal and Bangladesh.
- It is found in the Indus and Ganga river drainage, from Pakistan to Bangladesh and also in northeast India.
- It is also reported to be found in Gomti and Girwa rivers in Uttar Pradesh, Aravalli foothills and Gandak Dam in Bihar.
- Conservation Status:
- IUCN: Endangered
- Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972: Schedule I
- CITES: Appendix I
- Characteristics, Habitat and Behaviour:
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- Black spotted turtles are black in colour with yellowish streaks or spots and wedge-shaped marks.
- Their head is black with yellow spots and is extremely large, short-snouted.
- The neck is greyish and has white spots. The skin at the backside of the forehead of this species is divided into shields.
- They are freshwater turtles found in lentic water bodies.
- They are mainly carnivorous and feed on snails and insect larvae, however, vegetative material has also been found in some of the digestive tracts.
- Major Threats:
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- Habitat loss due to land fillings and conversion of the lentic water bodies into agricultural land such as rice fields and for human settlements.
- The species is subjected to commercial exploitation for meat consumption.