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Hydromedusa tectifera COPE, 1870

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Higher TaxaChelidae, Hydromedusinae, Pleurodira, Testudines (turtles)
Subspecies 
Common NamesE: South-American Snake-headed Turtle
Portuguese: Cágado, Cágado-Cabeça-de-Cobra, Cágado-de-Pescoço-Comprido 
SynonymHydromedusa tectifera COPE 1870: 147
Hydromedusa platanensis GRAY 1873: 302
Hydromedusa wagleri GÜNTHER 1884: 423
Hydromedusa tectifera — BOULENGER 1885: 85
Hydromedusa tectifera — BOULENGER 1886: 425
Hydromedusa platanensis — GÜNTHER 1884: 423
Hydromedusa tectifera — ALDERTON 1988
Hydromedusa tectifera — ERNST & BARBOUR 1989: 51
Hydromedusa tectifera — TTWG 2014
Hydromedusa tectifera — TTWG 2021
Hydromedusa tectifera — TTWG 2025 
DistributionSE Brazil (Sao Paulo, Rio Grande do Sul, Rio de Janeiro [HR 32: 274], Parana, Minas Gerais, Santa Catarina ?), E Paraguay, NE Argentina, Uruguay

Type locality: Uruguay (“Monte Video”)  
Reproductionoviparous. 
TypesType: USNM or ANSP, but apprently lost fide TTWG 2021: 43.
Holotype: NHMUK 1947.3.5.85 = BMNH [platanensis] 
DiagnosisUnfortunately we had to temporarily remove additional information as this was scraped by multiple AI companies who sell that data to their customers. These details, e.g. detailed descriptions or comparisons (about 2806 characters), are available for collaborators and contributors. Please contact us for details. 
CommentHabitat: freshwater (Small rivers)

Distribution: see map in TTWG 2025. 
EtymologyNamed after Latin tectum = roof, a covering and fero = I bear, carry; a reference to the carapace.

The genus was named after Greek hydor = water (when used as a prefix, hydro-); Medusa was one of the three Gorgons in Greek mythology. 
References
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  • Baur, G. 1893. Notes on the classification and taxonomy of the Testudinata. Proc. Amer. Philos. Soc. 31: 210-225 - get paper here
  • Bonin, F., Devaux, B. & Dupré, A. 2006. Turtles of the World. English translation by P.C.H. Pritchard. Johns Hopkins University Press, 416 pp.
  • Bonino, M.F., J.N. Lescano, J.G. Haro & G.C. Leynaud 2009. Diet of Hydromedusa tectifera (Testudines-Chelidae) in a mountain stream of Córdoba province, Argentina Amphibia-Reptilia, 30(4): 545-554. - get paper here
  • Boulenger, G. A. 1885. Second list of reptiles and batrachians from the province Rio Grande do Sul, sent to the Natural History Museum by Dr. H. van Ihering. Ann. Mag. nat. Hist. (5) 16: 85-88 - get paper here
  • Boulenger, G.A. 1886. A synopsis of the reptiles and batrachians of the province Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. Ann. Mag. nat. Hist. (5) 18: 423-445 - get paper here
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  • Cacciali, Pier; Norman J. Scott, Aida Luz Aquino Ortíz, Lee A. Fitzgerald, and Paul Smith 2016. The Reptiles of Paraguay: Literature, Distribution, and an Annotated Taxonomic Checklist. SPECIAL PUBLICATION OF THE MUSEUM OF SOUTHWESTERN BIOLOGY, NUMBER 11: 1–373 - get paper here
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  • Lüling, K.-H. 1984. Die Schlangenhalsschildkröte Hydromedusa tectifera in ihrer Heimat. Herpetofauna 6 (33): 28-31 - get paper here
  • MARQUES, O. A. V.; PEREIRA, D. N.; BARBO, F.E.; GERMANO, V.J. & SAWAYA, R. J. 2009. Os Répteis do Município de São Paulo: diversidade e ecologia da fauna pretérita e atual. Biota Neotropica 9: 1-12 - get paper here
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  • Noleto, R.B. et al. 2006. Karyotypic characterization of Hydromedusa tectifera(Testudines, Pleurodira) from the upper Iguaçu River in the Brazilian state of Paraná. Genetics and Molecular Biology 29 (2): 263-266 - get paper here
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  • ROCHA, CARLOS FREDERICO D.; HELENA G.BERGALLO, JOSÉ P. POMBAL JR., LENA GEISE, MONIQUE VAN SLUYS, RONALDO FERNANDES, ULISSES CARAMASCHI 2004. FAUNA DE ANFÍBIOS, RÉPTEIS E MAMÍFEROS DO ESTADO DO RIO DE JANEIRO, SUDESTE DO BRASIL. Publ. Avul. Mus. Nac., Rio de Janeiro (104): 3-23 - get paper here
  • RODRIGUES NEHEMY, IBRAHIM KAMEL; THAYLLON ORZECHOWSKY GOMES, FERNANDA PAIVA, WESLEY KAUAN KUBO, JOÃO EMÍLIO DE ALMEIDA JÚNIOR, NATHAN FERNANDES NEVES & VINICIUS DE AVELAR SÃO PEDRO. 2022. Herpeto-commerce: A look at the illegal online trade of amphibians and reptiles in Brazil. Cuadernos de Herpetología 36(2): 185–196. - get paper here
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  • TTWG [Peter Paul van Dijk, John B. Iverson, Anders G.J. Rhodin, H. Bradley Shaffer, and Roger Bour] 2014. Turtles of the World, 7th Edition: Annotated Checklist of Taxonomy, Synonymy, Distribution with Maps, and Conservation Status. 000.v7. Chelonian Research Monographs (ISSN 1088-7105) No. 5, doi:10.3854/crm.5.000.checklist.v7.2014 - get paper here
  • TTWG [TURTLE TAXONOMY WORKING GROUP: RHODIN, A.G.J., IVERSON, J.B., FRITZ, U., GALLEGO-GARCÍA, N., GEORGES, A., SHAFFER, H.B., AND VAN DuK, P.P.]. 2025. Turtles of the World: Annotated Checklist and Atlas of Taxonomy, Synonymy, Distribution, and Conservation Status (10th Ed.). In: Rhodin, A.G.J., Iverson, J.B., van Dijk, P.P., Stanford, C.B., Goode, E.V., Buhlmann, K.A., and Mittermeier, R.A. (Eds.). Conservation Biology of Freshwater Turtles and Tortoises: A Compilation Project of the IUCN SSC Tortoise and Freshwater Turtle Specialist Group. Chelonian Research Monographs 10:1-575 - get paper here
  • TTWG; Rhodin, A.G.J., Iverson, J.B., Bour, R., Fritz, U., Georges, A., Shaffer, H.B., and van Dijk, P.P. 2021. Turtles of the World: Annotated Checklist and Atlas of Taxonomy, Synonymy, Distribution, and Conservation Status (9th Ed.). In: Rhodin, A.G.J., Iverson, J.B., van Dijk, P.P., Stanford, C.B., Goode, E.V., Buhlmann, K.A., and Mittermeier, R.A. (Eds.). Conservation Biology of Freshwater Turtles and Tortoises: A Compilation Project of the IUCN/SSC Tortoise and Freshwater Turtle Specialist Group. Chelonian Research Monographs 8:1–472. doi:10.3854/crm.8.checklist.atlas.v9.2021. - get paper here
  • Valverde, J. 2009. Südamerikanische Schildkröten. Reptilia (Münster) 14 (80): 16-27 - get paper here
  • Valverde, J. 2010. Schlangenhalsschildkröten. Reptilia (Münster) 15 (85): 16-23 [erratum in 86: 10] - get paper here
  • Wolff, B. 2002. Haltung und Nachzucht der Argentinischen Schlangenhalsschildkröte, Hydromedusa tectifera (COPE 1869). Elaphe 10 (1): 31-36
  • Zaher, Hussam; Fausto Erritto BarboI; Paola Sanchez Martínez; Cristiano Nogueira; Miguel Trefaut Rodrigues; Ricardo Jannini Sawaya 2011. Répteis do Estado de São Paulo: conhecimento atual e perspectivas. Biota Neotropica, 11 (1): 1–15. - get paper here
 
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