Historical Papers
Ogilby, J.B. 1890. Description of a new Australian tortoise. Records of the Australian Museum 1:56-59.
Comment: Holotype: AM R6256 at the Australian Museum, PO Box A285, 6-8 College Street, Sydney South, New South Wales, 2000, Australia. Carapace length of Holotype: 254.49 mm.
Chelodina rugosa (together with Chelodina siebenrocki which was synonymized with C. rugosa) has been moved to the genus Macrochelodina. (Jan Matiaska, 2004).
DESCRIPTION OF A NEW AUSTRALIAN TORTOISE
BY J. DOUGLAS OGILBY.
CHELODINA RUGOSA, sp. nov.
CARAPACE ovate, somewhat pyriform, narrower anteriorly, slightly emarginate behind, without vertebral keel, deeply sculptured. Nuchal plate between two marginal plates : eighth and ninth marginal plates latteraly expanded, twice as broad as those above the bridge. Profile of back considerably elevated and rounded, deepest in front of the bridge on second vertebral plate. A deep curvature above and beyond the bridge from the fifth to eighth lateral plates. Nuchal plate one-seventh longer than broad, quadrilateral : margino-nuchal plates much longer on the outer than the inner edge, the latter being equal to the breadth : margino-brachial plates quadrangular, the breadth of the first pair four-sevenths of the length, with the anterior and posterior margins equal; second pair with the anterior margin nearly twice as long as the posterior : first pair of margino-lateral plates very narrow, more than three times as long as broad, and much longer but not so broad as the second margino-brachial; second and third pairs nearly rectangular; fourth pair longer externally and posteriorly; fifth plate quadrilateral and rectangular, slightly longer than broad : first pair of margon-femorals as broad as the inner edge, which is slightly less tjhan the outer; second and third palte quadrilateral, longer than broad, with the inner edges the shorter : supra-caudals convex on the outer edge, forming a shallow notch at the symphysis, about two-thirds as broad as long, and very distinctly arched at the suture. First vertebral plate octagonal, * larger than the others, in conjunction with the nutchal, margino-nutchal, and anterior half of the first margino-brachial; posterior edge deeply concave : second and third hexagonal : fourth † hexagonal (?) with the anterior edge twice as long as the posterior, fifth plate quadrilateral, its anterior edge but one-third of the length of the posterior, which barely touches the last margino-femoral, and is not perceptibly angulated. Posterior costal plates as high as the lower edge; anterior plate very large, the outer edge nearly one-half longer than the first vertebral plate, measured along its central line. All the plates of the carapace densely and, with the exception of the marginal plates, deeply sculptured; for the most part this sculpturation is most eccentric in character, consisting chiefly of a network of deep grooves enclosing nodules of many shapes and sizes; on the middle vertebral plates, however it takes a more or less regular longitudinal form, while on the lower half of some of the costal plates, a tendency to a transverse ornamentation may be traced : plates of the plastron and bridge distinctly marked by a network of grooves scarcely perceptible to the touch.
Plastron equally broad in front and behind, its breadth being but little less than half its length measured along the median line from the origin of the suture between the gular plates to the end of that between the annals; rounded in front and with a deep semi-ovate notch behind. Intragular palte moderate, octagonal, the hinder edges being distinctly though very obtusely angulated; posterior angle very acute : gular plates quadrilateral, the sutural edge very short, about one-third of the hinder edge, which is one-half of the length of the plate : humerals with the outer and hinder edges produced backwards, and meeting at an acute angle; hinder edge concave : pectorals large, pentagonal, the sutural edge about two-thirds of the length of the intragular plate, and rather less than the outer edge of the humeral plate : abdominal plates rectangular, one-fifth broader than long : femoral plates quadrilateral, the sutural edge half as long as the breadth, and but little less than the external edge, which is convex and laterally expanded, but not to so great an extent as the corresponding eighth and ninth marginal plates of the carapace; anal plates quadrilateral, the anterior edge straight and longer than the exterior, which with the posterior forms a very acute angle; these plates are bent strongly upwards towards the carapace, the distance between their tips is much greater than that between a tip and the nearest point of the carapace. Colors - Carapace rich dark brown with a reddish tinge on the sides; plastron, bridge, and the lower surface of marginal plates pale yellow, the sutures with a light brown edging.
* In the type specimen, which is as yet unique, there is on the left side a small plate intercalated between the first vertebral and first costal plates, and standing on the anterior margino-brachial plate, but from an examination of the opposite facies it is evident that this is accidental.
† This plate in our specimen is broken up into two parts, evidently by an accidental fracture, the hinder part being small and subcircular.
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