Rare southern Vietnamese box turtle recorded in Vietnam's former Phú Yên province
The southern Vietnamese box turtle weighs about 1 kg and has a light-brown shell, with one unusual feature: its plastron can close completely against its carapace.
Vietnamese and Russian researchers have recently recorded the southern Vietnamese box turtle (Cuora picturata), also known as the Vietnamese box turtle, a member of the Asian pond turtle family (Geoemydidae). The turtle was found during a survey in January, carried out for the project "Study of the current status and proposed solutions for the management and conservation of biodiversity in the Đèo Cả - Hòn Vọng Phu area, Phú Yên province" (the former Phú Yên province, now part of Đắk Lắk province in south-central Vietnam), conducted by the Vietnam-Russia Tropical Centre (Trung tâm Nhiệt đới Việt - Nga), the Forest Science Institute of South Central Vietnam and the Central Highlands (Viện Khoa học Lâm nghiệp Nam Trung Bộ và Tây Nguyên) and Lomonosov Moscow State University in Russia. The species is rare and endemic to the Phú Yên area and some neighboring areas of Khánh Hòa province, the former Bình Định province (now part of Gia Lai province) and the Central Highlands part of Đắk Lắk province.
The southern Vietnamese box turtle. (Photo: Vietnam-Russia Tropical Centre).
During the survey, the scientists noted that the species is distinctive in that its plastron can close completely against its carapace, with no notch at the rear of the pale-yellow plastral scutes, which bear large black blotches. The head is slightly tapered at the front, with a short snout, and is pale yellow or reddish-brown with small dark spots.
Most turtles can only pull their head and legs into their shell, leaving some "flesh exposed" on the outside. The southern Vietnamese box turtle, however, has a rather unusual trick: it can turn itself into a fully sealed box by withdrawing its head and legs and "closing the lid." This makes it virtually impregnable, as no part of its body is left exposed. Its "lid" consists of two movable pieces, the carapace (upper shell) and the plastron (lower shell), a hallmark of box turtles that other turtles lack.
The upper side (left) and underside of a southern Vietnamese box turtle. (Photo: Vietnam-Russia Tropical Centre).
According to the Wildlife Conservation Society Vietnam (WCS Vietnam), Southeast Asia has the world's most diverse tortoise and freshwater turtle fauna, with more than 90 species, or over 25% of all known tortoise and freshwater turtle species. Vietnam is home to 25 of these species, including two endemics: the southern Vietnamese box turtle (Cuora picturata) and the Vietnamese pond turtle (Mauremys annamensis).
The southern Vietnamese box turtle is currently listed as Critically Endangered on the Red List of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). An estimated 3,000 to 10,000 individuals remain in the wild. In Vietnam, populations of yellow-headed box turtles are declining rapidly due to habitat loss and hunting. Hunting, trading or consuming these protected turtles is illegal and can lead to criminal prosecution.
According to experts at the Vietnam-Russia Tropical Centre, conserving this exceptionally rare species requires protecting its habitat and educating local people not to hunt or trade wildlife.
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