Northern Snake-Neck Turtle -- Macrochelodina rugosa
by Scott Thomson.
This species was described in 1890 by John Ogilby from material that was collected in northern Queensland. Since this time several other species have been synonymised with it including most recently Macrochelodina seibenrocki and Macrochelodina kuchlingi. The first has been demonstrated both on morphology and electrophoresis to be identical, the latter was based on a single specimen of dubious origin.
In the wild this species is found in lowland regions throughout northern Australia and in southern New Guinea. It has been shown to be capable of underwater nesting though it most likely also nests in more typical patterns, particularly in New Guinea.
The turtle mostly feeds nocturnally in the wild, eating a variety of crustaceans, molluscs and fish. It is quite secretive and can be found in undercuttings of river banks and among Pandanus roots.
The picture was taken by Paul Vander Schouw and is of a New Guinea form of Macrochelodina rugosa. The original description of the species (Ogilby, 1890) can be found in the literature section on this site.
Distinguishing between New Guinea and Australian specimens is possible, though it is extremely difficult and unreliable. It is also possible to distinguiish between the eastern and western populations in Australia and it was thought possible that the Northern Territory and Queensland forms may also have represented different species, this has been demonstrated to be incorrect.
This species seems to do well as long as good water quality, high pH and attention to diet is maintained. It is a voracous feeder and grows quickly (too quickly if improper diet is given) it requires a tropical setup. See World Chelonian Trust for caresheets on this species.
References
Kennett, R.M., Christian, K. and Bedford, G. 1998. Underwater nesting by the Australian freshwater turtle, Chelodina rugosa: The effect of prolonged immersion and eggshell thickness on incubation period, egg survivorship and hatchling size. Canadian Journal of Zoology, 76:1019-1023.
Ogilby, J.B. 1890. Description of a new Australian tortoise. Records of the Australian Museum 1:56-59.
Rhodin, A.G.J. and Mittermeier, R.A. 1976. Chelodina parkeri, a new species of chelid turtle from New Guinea, with a discussion of Chelodina seibenrocki Werner, 1901. Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool. 147:465-488.
Thomson S., Kennett R. and Georges A. (2000). A new species of long necked turtle (Chelidae:Chelodina) from the sandstone plateau of Arnhem Land, Northern Australia. Chelonian Conservation and Biology 3:675-685.