Indian Black Turtle
Melanochelys trijuga
Silhouette: SeismicShrimp · PhyloPic
- KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
- PhylumChordata (Chordates)
- ClassTestudines
- FamilyGeoemydidae (Eurasian Pond, River, and Neotropical Wood Turtles)
- GenusMelanochelys (Indian Black and Three-keeled Land Turtles)
- SpeciesMelanochelys trijuga (Indian Black Turtle)
About the Indian Black Turtle
The Indian black turtle (Melanochelys trijuga) or Indian pond terrapin is a species of medium-sized freshwater turtle found in South Asia. Their shell is a typically made up of shades of dark brown, green, or grey, not just black. Their heads feature even more variation in color, as different subspecies may have pink or yellow spots. Melanochelys trijuga coronata has a yellow spot on the head, while M. t. trijuga and M. t. indopeninsularis have different pink spots. The average shell is about 6 inches long, while the entire body is usually about one foot.
The species occurs in India, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, the Maldives, Nepal, and the Chagos Archipelago, where it may have been introduced. There are five recognized subspecies with overlapping distributions: M. t. trijuga: peninsula black turtle, India
M. t. coronata: Cochin black turtle, India M. t. indopeninsularis: Bangladesh black turtle, India, Nepal M. t. parkeri: Sri Lanka M. t. thermalis: Sri Lanka black turtle, India, Maldives, Sri Lanka The Indian black turtle inhabits a variety of water bodies including ponds, marshes streams, rivers and artificial water bodies like... Wikipedia →
Recent sightings of Indian Black Turtle in Periyar National Park
LIVEiNaturalistGlobal Distribution
Warmer areas are where this animal is recorded most often.
Parks Where Found
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Wilpattu National Park | 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka | |
| 2 | Nagarhole National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 3 | Yala National Park | 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka | |
| 4 | Periyar National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 5 | Bandipur National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 6 | Minneriya National Park | 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka | |
| 7 | Jim Corbett National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 8 | Mudumalai National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 9 | Chitwan National Park | 🇳🇵 Nepal | |
| 10 | Sinharaja Forest Reserve | 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka | |
| 11 | Royal Bardia National Park | 🇳🇵 Nepal |
Quick answers
What are the chances of seeing a Indian Black Turtle in Periyar National Park?
About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Indian Black Turtle sighting in Periyar National Park, based on 7 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data.
When is the best time to see Indian Black Turtle in Periyar National Park?
February has the highest sighting rate for Indian Black Turtle in Periyar National Park in our monthly data.