Lissemys punctata
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[Photo] Indian Flapshell Turtle (Lissemys punctata), Bannerghatta Rehabilitation Centre, Bangalore, India. Date June 2006. Author L. Shyamal.
Indian Flap-shelled Turtle Lissemys punctata is a species of turtle found in South Asia. They are widespread and not uncommon.
The flap-shelled turtle was placed in Appendix I of CITES in 1975 at the request of Bangladesh. However, L. p. punctata was the taxa listed, not L. p. andersoni. Subsequent reviews of the literature and available data could find no evidence to support this endangered status. Some scientists now classify L. p. punctata and L. p. andersoni as a single subspecies. This subspecies is the most common aquatic turtle in India. Consequently, the Indian flap-shelled turtle was removed from the endangered species list in 1983 (48 FR 52740). This action however did not affect the turtle's status on Appendix I of CITES.
Distribution
Pakistan, India (Sikkim), Sri Lanka, Nepal and Bangladesh (Indus and Ganges drainages), Burma (Irrawaddy and Salween rivers). Introduced to the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
It is also found in the desert ponds of Rajasthan where hundreds are killed every year during the dry summers. The race andersoni is found in Bangladesh, India, Nepal and Pakistan.
Type locality: "Des grandes Indes" (= continental India); restricted to "Pondicherry, Coromandel Coast, India" (11º 56'N; 79º 53'E, on the southeast coast of India) by Webb (1980).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lissemys_punctata
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