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Platemys platycephala (SCHNEIDER, 1792)

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Higher TaxaChelidae, Chelinae, Pleurodira, Testudines (turtles)
SubspeciesPlatemys platycephala platycephala (SCHNEIDER 1792)
Platemys platycephala melanonota ERNST 1984 
Common NamesE: (Western) Twist-neck Turtle
Portuguese: Cágado, Charapa, Charapita, Charapita-de-Aguajal, Charapita-de-Altura, Chata, Jabuti-Machado, Jabuti-Mato-Grossense, Lalá, Machado, Perema, Quetijápa 
SynonymTestudo platycephala SCHNEIDER 1792: 264
Testudo planiceps SCHOEPFF 1801 (non Testudo planiceps GRAY 1854)
Testudo martinella DAUDIN 1803
Emys discolor SCHWEIGGER 1812
Emys canaliculata — SPIX 1824
Emys carunculata CUVIER 1831 (nomen nudum)
Emys caniculata — GRAY 1831 (ex errore)
Hydraspis constricta GRAY 1831
Emys martirella SCHINZ 1833 (ex errore)
Platemys Martinella — DUMÉRIL & BIBRON 1835: 407
Platemys platycephala — BOULENGER 1889
Platemys platemys DUNN 1945 (ex errore)
Platemys platycephala — ALDERTON 1988
Platemys platycephala — ERNST & BARBOUR 1989: 61
Platemys platycephala platycephala — GORZULA & SEÑARIS 1999
Platemys platycephala — TTWG 2014
Platemys platycephala — TTWG 2021

Platemys platycephala melanonota ERNST 1984
Platemys platycephala melanonota ERNST 1984: 347
Platemys platycephala melanonota — FRITZ & HAVAS 2007
Platemys platycephala melanonota — TTWG 2021 
DistributionCaribbean drainages of Venezuela, Guyana, French Guiana, Suriname, Amazon drainages from NE Bolivia (Beni), E Ecuador, Peru, SE Colombia, Brazil (Amazonas, Para, Mato Grosso, Roraima)

melanota: Peru, Ecuador; Type Locality: “Vicinity of Galilea, on the Río Santiago, Amazonas, Perú (4°1'S, 77°47'W).” Latitude and longitude more precisely specifi ed by the collector as 4°00'55"S, 77°46'40"W.

Type locality: "Ost-Indien" (in error); restricted to "Cayenne, French Guiana" by Ernst 1983  
Reproductionoviparous. 
TypesHolotype: unlocated (fide Iverson 1992: 47)
Holotype: USNM 224136 [melanonota] 
DiagnosisAdditional details, e.g. a detailed description or comparisons (5343 characters), are available for collaborators and contributors. Please contact us for details. 
CommentKaryotype: Platemys platycephala was the first reptile species for which mosaicism of diploid-triploid specimens was reported (BICKHAM et al. 1985)

Type species: Testudo planiceps SCHOEPFF 1801 is the type species of the genus Platemys WAGLER 1830: 135.

Habitat: freshwater (Swamps, ponds) 
EtymologyNamed after the flat head, from Greek kephale = head.

The genus was named after Greek platys = wide, flat and emys = freshwater turtle.  
References
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  • Bernarde, Paulo Sérgio;, Reginaldo Assêncio Machado & Luiz Carlos Batista Turci 2011. Herpetofauna da área do Igarapé Esperança na Reserva Extrativista Riozinho da Liberdade, Acre – Brasil. Biota Neotropica 11 (3): 117-144 - get paper here
  • Bickham, J.W. & B.G. Hanks 2009. Diploid-Triploid Mosaicism and Tissue Ploidy Diversity within Platemys platycephala from Suriname. Cytogenet Genome Res 127: 280-286 - get paper here
  • Bickham, J.W., B.G. Hanks, D.W. Hale & J.E. Martin 1993. Ploidy Diversity and the Production of Balanced Gametes in Male Twist-Necked Turtles (Platemys platycephala) Copeia 1993 (3): 723-727. - get paper here
  • Bickham, J.W., Tucker, P.K., and Legler, J.M. 1985. Diploid-triploid mosaicism: an unusual phenomenon in side-necked turtles (Platemys platycephala). Science 227: 1591–1593 - get paper here
  • Böhm, Stephan 2013. Notes on Short-Term Movements and Dietary Spectrum of the Twist-Necked Turtle, Platemys platycephala (Testudines: Chelidae) in the Nouragues Reserve, French Guyana. Chelonian Conservation and Biology Jul 2013, Vol. 12, No. 1: 112-118. - get paper here
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  • Wagler, Jean G. 1830. Natürliches System der Amphibien, mit vorangehender Classification der Säugetiere und Vögel. Ein Beitrag zur vergleichenden Zoologie. 1.0. Cotta, München, Stuttgart, and Tübingen, 354 pp. [1830-1832] - get paper here
  • Wirth, Michael 2012. Und das alles für die Schildkröten …. Terraria-Elaphe 2012 (2): 84-89 - get paper here
 
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