East African Black Mud Turtle

About the East African Black Mud Turtle

The East African black mud turtle (Pelusios subniger), also known as the Pan terrapin, is a species of turtle in the family Pelomedusidae, native to eastern and southeastern Africa. The East African black mud turtle has a smooth, domed carapace with a length of 5.1-7.9 in. The carapace is typically dark brown, gray, or black, often with yellow or dark markings on the margins. They are rather dull in color like most of their genus. The plastron is hinged. The underside of the turtle can be brown, grey, black, or yellow. The upper jaw has a blunt, smooth shape. The head of an adult is generally uniform in color. As in all side-necked turtles, the neck retracts the head sideways instead of vertically into the shell. This species may be confused with the West African mud turtle.

Two subspecies are recognized: P. s. subniger　Bonnaterre, 1789 - 　type species P. s. parietalis　Bour, 1983 -　Seychelles black mud turtle The species occurs in much of eastern and southeastern tropical and subtropical Africa, with a southern limit in Zimbabwe, and including Madagascar and the Seychelles (P. s. parietalis in the latter location). Nonindigenous populations... Wikipedia →