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Mauremys annamensis (SIEBENROCK, 1903)

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Higher TaxaGeoemydidae (Geoemydinae), Testudinoidea, Testudines (turtles)
Subspecies 
Common NamesE: Annam Leaf Turtle
G: Vietnamesische Sumpfschildkröte 
SynonymCyclemys annamensis SIEBENROCK 1903
Annamemys merkleni BOURRET 1939
Annamemys annamensis — SAVAGE 1953
Annamemys mekleni — TIEN 1957 (ex errore)
Annamemys annamensis — KING & BURKE 1989
Annamemys annamensis — ERNST & BARBOUR 1989: 140
Mauremys annamensis — IVERSON & MCCORD 1994
Ocadia glyphistoma MCCORD & IVERSON 1994 (part.)
Annamemys annamensis — OBST 2003: 17
Mauremys annamensis — FELDHAM & PARHAM 2004
Mauremys annamensis — TTWG 2014
Mauremys annamensis — TTWG 2021
Mauremys annamensis — TTWG 2025 
DistributionC Vietnam (Quang Nam, Cu Lao Cham Archipelago)

Type locality: Phuc-Son (southwest of Tourane, central Annam), Vietnam.

glyphistoma: SW China (SW Guangxi), NE Vietnam  
Reproductionoviparous. Exhibits temperature‐dependent sex determination (TSD) fide Cornejo-Páramo et al. 2020 (and references therein). 
TypesHolotype: NMW
Lectotype: CAS 9142, designated by Savage, 1953. Sent by Dr. Rene Bourret [Annamemys merkleni]
 
DiagnosisUnfortunately we had to temporarily remove additional information as this was scraped by multiple AI companies who sell that data. These details, e.g. detailed descriptions are available for collaborators and contributors. Please contact us if you need any of this material. 
CommentRelegation of this taxon to the synonymy of Mauremys nigricans by McDowell (1964) was incorrect according to Pritchard (1979:191). McDowell considered only the juveniles, and the adults of Mauremys nigricans and Annamemys annamensis are very different. Although the specific distinctness of this form has been discussed, the generic status has not. See Bourret (1941:145 and 175), Savage (1953), and Ernst & Barbour 1989: 141.

Hybridization: Viable (though not really healthy) hybrids between Mauremys annamensis and Cuora amboinensis kamaroma have been described by FRITZ & MENDAU (2002). O. glyphistoma is a hybrid between Ocadia sinensis and Mauremys annamensis (DALTON 2003). A specimen of O. glyphistoma studied by SPINKS et al. (2004) was most similar morphologically to O. sinensis yet falls on a short branch in the clade with Mauremys by DNA sequence data, a result that is consistent with it being a hybrid between a male O. sinensis and a female M. annamensis. Similarly, STUART & PARHAM (2007) confirmed that O. glyphistoma is a hybrid of Mauremys sinensis and M. cf. annamensis.

Conservation: This is one of the most endangered turtle species according to a 2003 assessment by the IUCN.

Habitat: freshwater (Rivers, swamps, ponds)

Distribution: see map in TTWG 2025. 
EtymologyNamed after the type locality. 
References
  • BARTH, Dana; DETLEF BERNHARD; GUIDO FRITZSCH & UWE FRITZ 2004. The freshwater turtle genus Mauremys (Testudines, Geoemydidae) — a textbook example of an east–west disjunction or a taxonomic misconcept? Zoologica Scripta 33 (3): 213–221 - get paper here
  • Bour, R. 2008. Global diversity of turtles (Chelonii; Reptilia) in freshwater. Hydrobiologia 595:593–598 - get paper here
  • Bourret, R. 1941. Les tortues de l'Indochine. Institut Océanographique l'Indochine 38:1-235
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  • Fong, Jonathan J.; Bryan L. Stuart, Timothy E. M. Mccormack & James F. Parham 2019. First Genetic Data of the Critically Endangered Vietnamese Pond Turtle (Mauremys annamensis) from Known-locality Specimens. Current Herpetology Aug 2019 Vol. 38, No. 2: 140-152 - get paper here
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