Species Chelodina (Chelydera) burrungandjii Thomson, Kennett & Georges, 2000
Sandstone Snake-necked Turtle
- Chelodina (Macrochelodina) burrungandjii Thomson, S., Kennett, R. & Georges, A. 2000. A new species of long-necked turtle (Testudines: Chelidae) from the Arnhem Land Plateau, Northern Territory, Australia. Chelonian Conservation and Biology 3(4): 675-685.
Type data:
Holotype NTM 16010, Koolpin Gorge, South Alligator River, Northern Territory [13°28'S, 132°38'E]. - Macrochelodina walloyarrina McCord, W.P. & Ouni, M.J. 2007. A new genus of Australian longneck turtle (Testudines: Chelidae) and a new species of Macrochelodina from the Kimberley region of Western Australia (Australia). Reptilia 31: 56-64.
Type data:
Holotype WAM R164345, Fitzroy River, Fitzroy River Crossing, Western Australia.
Introduction
Kimberley populations are regarded by some as distinctive (Cann 1998; Thomson et al. 2000; McCord & Ouni 2007; Cann 2008), but there is little published data or analysis to support this, and resolution of this is complicated by issues of hybridisation and introgression. Hybridises with Chelodina rugosa yielding fertile offspring where they come into contact, typically in the escarpment country bordering the sandstone tablelands and the lowlands (Georges et al. 2002). Artner (2008) distinguishes the Arnhem Land and Kimberley forms as subspecies Chelodina burrangandjii burrangandjii and Chelodina burrungandjii walloyarrina respectively, a position shared by Cann & Sadlier (2017). Georges & Thomson (2010) recognise the validity of C. burrangandjii as distinct species, with C. walloyarrina as synonym, while van Dijk et al. (2014) and Rhodin et al. (2017) list C. walloyarrina as distinct species but recognise its validity can be controversial until further analyses are carried out with a much larger sample.
We follow the Australian Society of Herpetologists in treating C. walloyarrina as a junior synonym of C. burrangandjii until more comprehensive work can be conducted to properly establish relationships.
Distribution
States
Northern Territory, Western Australia
Extra Distribution Information
Australian Endemic.
IBRA
NT, WA: Arnhem Plateau (ARP), Central Arnhem (CA), Central Kimberley (CK), Northern Kimberley (NK), Victoria Bonaparte (VB)
Distribution References
Ecological Descriptors
Carnivorous, lake, permanent pond.
General References
Artner, H. 2008. The world's extant turtles, Part 1. Emys 15: 4-32
Cann, J. 2008. Wild Australia Guide. Freshwater Turtles. Archerfield, Queensland : Steve Parish.
Cann, J. & Sadlier, R. 2017. Freshwater turtles of Australia. CSIRO Publishing 464 pp.
Georges, A., Adams, M. & McCord, W. 2002. Electrophoretic delineation of species boundaries within the genus Chelodina (Testudines : Chelidae) of Australia, New Guinea and Indonesia. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 134: 401-421
Georges, A. & Thomson, S. 2010. Diversity of Australasian freshwater turtles, with an annotated synonymy and keys to species. Zootaxa 2496: 1-37 [17]
McCord, W.P. & Ouni, M.J. 2007. A new genus of Australian longneck turtle (Testudines: Chelidae) and a new species of Macrochelodina from the Kimberley region of Western Australia (Australia). Reptilia 31: 56-64
Thomson, S., Kennett, R. & Georges, A. 2000. A new species of long-necked turtle (Testudines: Chelidae) from the Arnhem Land Plateau, Northern Territory, Australia. Chelonian Conservation and Biology 3(4): 675-685
Common Name References
Thomson, S., Kennett, R. & Georges, A. 2000. A new species of long-necked turtle (Testudines: Chelidae) from the Arnhem Land Plateau, Northern Territory, Australia. Chelonian Conservation and Biology 3(4): 675-685 (Sandstone Snake-necked Turtle)
History of changes
Published | As part of group | Action Date | Action Type | Compiler(s) |
---|---|---|---|---|
30-Nov-2022 | CHELIDAE | 30-Nov-2022 | MOVED | |
31-Oct-2018 | CHELIDAE | 20-Sep-2018 | MODIFIED | |
21-Mar-2016 | CHELIDAE | 27-Jan-2017 | MODIFIED | |
04-Sep-2013 | CHELIDAE | 02-Jul-2015 | MODIFIED | |
09-Aug-2012 | 09-Aug-2012 | MODIFIED | ||
18-Apr-2011 | ADDED |