The turtles and crocodiles of Thailand and adjacent waters

Abstract

The entire known turtle and crocodile faunas of Thailand and adjacent waters are treated, based on collections in Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok and in part on specimens in the EHT-HMS collection in Lawrence, Kansas. The number of species and subspecies here reported is 23 turtles and 3 crocodiles. Certain other specimens of turtles in the Bangkok Zoological Gardens purporting to be from Thailand have been examined. Some of these may also have a place in the Thai fauna, but their provenance is uncertain, some certainly not from Thailand.Map 1. Provinces (Changwats) of Thailand. The numbers refer to the adjoining list of provincial names, and have no significance in themselves. The University Science Bulletin TESTUDINES General Consideration of the Testudines A considerable number of the herpetologists of the 19th century contributed to the understanding and description of the species, genera, famihes, and higher groups of the turtles. Cope proposed a suborder Athecae for the huge sea turtle (Leathery Turtle) thus separating the one family, genus, and species (two subspecies) from all other turtles. This has been rather generally accepted by herpetologists. However, Mertens and Wermuth, 1955, in a critical list of the recent turtles, do not recognize the suborder Athecae but place its family Dermochelydidae with the family Cheloniidae under a Sectio Chelonioidea (superfamily?), a treatment which may be questioned. Boulenger's "Catalogue of the chelonians, rhynchocephalians, and crocodiles" published in 1889 served largely as a guide to turtle classification. In 1909 Siebenrock published his "Synopsis der rezenten Schildkroten mit Berucksichtigung der in historischer Zeit ausgestorben en Arten." This tended to replace as a guide the earlier listing of Boulenger. Williams (1952) offered a tentative arrangement of the Testudinata of the world. The more recent work is that of Mertens and Wermuth (1955), "Die rezenten Schildroten, Krokodile und Briickenechsen: eine kritische Liste der heute lebenden Arten und Rassen." J. E. Gray, who was largely responsible for the description of genera and species of Asiatic turtles, was able to recognize a number of genera which Boulenger disregarded or rejected. Certain of these were resurrected by Genus Dermochelys Blainville

Predatory strike of the tentacled snake (Erpeton tentaculatum)

“…Instead, these tentacles are more likely to be part of the snake's other behaviours, perhaps part of crypsis. The body of Erpeton may be light reddish brown, sometimes patterned with paired spots (E. H. Taylor, 1965), or dark brown with light areas joining into dark stripes running along the body. The small, dorsoven trally compressed head continues on to a narrow neck that broadens posteriorly onto a generally wide body, which again narrows into a prehensile tail without bright or distinguishing colour.…”

“…In particular, Erpeton possess a shallow, dorsoven trally compressed skull (E. H. Taylor, 1965), a feature minimizing drag by reducing head profile through the water (M. A. Taylor, 1987).…”

Pelochelys cantorii Gray 1864 – Asian Giant Softshell Turtle

“…Taylor (1920) wrote that the species appeared to be rare in Luzon in the Philippines, and knew of a record from San Miguel, Bulacan, in southwest Luzon. Curiously, the live specimen from this locality illustrated by Taylor (1970) does not appear to be a Pelochelys; a photo of the turtle shows it to have a longer proboscis, more posteriorly-located eyes, a deeper head, and more convex bony carapace than is normal for a Pelochelys, and the specimen may in fact be an Amyda cartilaginea. Nevertheless, it does appear that a species of Pelochelys occurs in the Philippines.…”

“…It has not been recorded from any of the smaller Indonesian Archipelago islands, including Sulawesi, the Lesser Sundas, Halmahera, or Maluku. Taylor (1970) expressed the opinion that the wide distribution of Pelochelys was in part due to introduction • Chelonian Research Monographs,No. 5 by man, in that the species is widely used as food and often carried from place to place.…”

An inventory of combat rituals in snakes

“…1962 Abdulali, 1941 Beadon, 1910 Bhattacharya and Bhatnager, 1968 Davis, 1936Lowe, 1948 McCann, Millett, 1909Pope, 1937Prater, 1933Shaw, 1951Shine, 1978Wall, 1921Kassing, 1961Kroll, 1971 Shaw and Campbell, 1974 Shine, 1978 Shine, et al, 1981 Bennefield, 1982 Shine and Allen, 1980Shine, et al, 1981Shine, 1978Taylor, 1965Wall, 1921 Whitaker, 1971 Shine and Allen, 1980Shine, 1980 Shine and Allen, 1980 Dendroaspis Hemiaspis Naia jamesoni polylepis damelii haje Bogert and Roth, 1966Grant, 1956Leloup, 1964 Bogert and Roth, 1966 Leloup, 1964Shine, 1978 Carpenter, and Ferguson, 1978 Broadley and Cock, 1975 Leloup, 1964Shine, 1978 Shine and Allen, 1980 Richards, 1885 FitzSimons, Shine, 1978 tripudians Bogert and Roth, 1966Pope, 1935Shine 1978Thomas, 1970Wall, 1921 …”