Mauremys leprosa (Schoepff in Schweigger 1812) – Mediterranean Pond Turtle, Spanish Terrapin, Mediterranean Stripe-necked Terrapin

Abstract

The Mediterranean Pond Turtle, Mauremys leprosa (Family Geoemydidae) is a small to medium-sized freshwater turtle (carapace length up to ca. 210 mm in males, 240 mm in females), widely distributed in North Africa and across the Strait of Gibraltar to the Iberian Peninsula and southern France. Our current understanding of the species' evolutionary history involves complex patterns of population origination, dispersion, extinction, evolution into two major lineages (each with three sublineages), and human-assisted transport. Populations in North Africa are often isolated from one another by intervening arid terrain, and a complex pattern of local variation in shell markings has occurred. Mauremys leprosa tolerates salt water, and has a high tolerance for polluted freshwater habitats, reduced water levels, and elevated ambient temperatures; carnivorous by preference, it will also feed freely upon vegetation and has been reported ingesting nitrogenous animal and human waste. Nesting occurs once annually in most populations, with mean clutch size ranging from 3.8 to 9.6 eggs, depending on the population, with the incubation period also variable, from 55-108 days in Europe to 25-30 days in Africa, the shorter period there perhaps as a response to irregular and brief pluvial periods under very arid conditions.diStribution.

Reptile biodiversity in Souss-Massa National Park: an internationally important hotspot in the Mediterranean region

“…Comment : Mauremys leprosa is one of the two aquatic terrapin species that can be found in Morocco. Based on genetic data ( Fritz et al 2006 ), two subspecies are present in the country; M. l. leprosa , which occurs north of the Atlas Mountains and M. l. saharica , distributed in the southern (including SMNP) and eastern parts of the country ( Bertolero and Busack 2017 ). These subspecies are separated by the Atlas Mountains with a large contact zone located in the Rif and Middle Atlas Mountains ( Veríssimo et al 2016 ).…”

Enteric parasites in free-living Mediterranean pond turtle (Mauremys leprosa leprosa) in contrasted areas (natural vs polluted) from central-western of Morocco

“…Mauremys leprosa (family Geoemydidae) is a small to medium-sized freshwater turtle (shell length up to around 210 mm in males and 240 mm in females). It is an endemic species to the Mediterranean basin (Palacios et al, 2015) with a wide distribution in North Africa and Iberian Peninsula to the south of France (Bertolero and Busack, 2017). The species tolerate a different habitats (Bertolero and Busack, 2017) and it has been considered of "minor concern" in North Africa (Cox et al, 2006), "vulnerable" in the European red list of reptiles and as "threatened with extinction" in France (Héritier et al, 2017).…”

“…It is an endemic species to the Mediterranean basin (Palacios et al, 2015) with a wide distribution in North Africa and Iberian Peninsula to the south of France (Bertolero and Busack, 2017). The species tolerate a different habitats (Bertolero and Busack, 2017) and it has been considered of "minor concern" in North Africa (Cox et al, 2006), "vulnerable" in the European red list of reptiles and as "threatened with extinction" in France (Héritier et al, 2017). In North Africa, M. leprosa faces several degradation factors (Slimani et al, 2018;EL Hassani et al, 2019).…”

“…Habitat degradation and pollution are among the most signi cant (Gibbons et al,200). In addition, among the threats to this species, parasitism is an important in uencing factor to be taken into account (Bertolero and Busack, 2017;Laghzaoui et al, 2021aLaghzaoui et al, , 2020. In fact parasites have the potential to reduce immensely the tness of their host (Berven and Boltz, 2001) and to alter host population demography (Meyer et al, 2015).…”

Population structure and dynamics of the Mediterranean Pond Turtle Mauremys leprosa (Schweigger, 1812) in contrasted polluted aquatic environments

“…The Mediterranean Pond Turtle Mauremys leprosa (Schweigger, 1812) is a freshwater turtle endemic to the western Mediterranean basin, distributed from North Africa (Libya, Tunisia, Algeria, and Morocco) to southern Europe (Spain, Portugal, and southern France) (Bertolero and Busack, 2017). This wetland-dwelling species inhabits mainly lentic environments of Mediterranean rivers, which are mostly characterized by very low flows, except during exceptional massive floods in winter.…”