| general
|
| description |
It has a very flat head
and carapace. The carapace is oval in shape and has a
broad median groove created by two keels running virtually
the entire length of the carapace. This double keel is
very distinctive. The carapace coloration of my three
specimens is an unusual patchwork of light to dark browns
with streaks of black. The plastron is uniformly dark
brown or black with a yellowish rim that extends to the
marginal scutes. The flat head is a dull orange in color,
and the neck is covered with tubercles that diminish in
size toward the base of the neck. The skin on top of the
head is smooth and undivided, without large scales. The
remainder of the skin is very dark or black and the legs
are covered with large black scales. The legs and feet
have the appearance one usually associates with a turtle
that spends a good deal of time on land. |
| distribution |
 
 
 northern
half of South America, including: the Orinoco to all but
the upper Amazon basin in Venezuela, Columbia, eastern
Ecuador, Peru, northern Bolivia, the Guianas and northern
Brazil. |
| adult
size |
6" carapax length |
| housing |
| natural
habitats |
Semi-aquatic;
Small ponds and streams |
| aquarium |
Medium to large aquarium
with suitable basking branch |
| substrate |
Soil, mud, gravel, coarse
sand, smooth rocks |
| activity
period |
Daytime (diurnal);
12 - 14 hours each day with direct natural sunlight or
UV lamp (e.g. ReptiSun 5.0,
UV Heat Bulb) |
| temperature |
28 - 30 ¢XC -- basking
spot (e.g. Basking
Spot Lamp)
24 - 27 ¢XC -- cooler area (e.g. Daylight
Blue Bulb)
21 - 25 ¢XC -- at night (e.g. Nightlight
Red Bulb, Infrared
Heat Lamp, Ceramic
Heat Emitter) |
| hiding
place |
Advisable. Possibllites
include caves (e.g. Habbe
Hut, Heat Cave), etc |
| diet |
| wild
diet |
Carnivorous;
a variety of carrionand live prey |
| primary
food (75%) |
A good brand commercial
turtle food (e.g. Aquatic
Turtle Food) |
| secondary
food (23%) |
Whole prey items,prekilled
small whole fish, live earthworms, snails |
| occasional
food (2%) |
Small balls of ground
beef loaded with vitamin and calcium once every 2 weeks
|
| reproduction |
| reproduction |
Oviparous; lays 4 - 6
eggs |
