Geochelone
| Geochelone | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Geochelone elegans | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Sauropsida |
| Order: | Testudines |
| Suborder: | Cryptodira |
| Family: | Testudinidae |
| Genus: | Geochelone Fitzinger, 1835 |
| Species | |
Geochelone is a genus of tortoises.
Geochelone tortoises, which are also known as typical tortoises or terrestrial turtles, can be found in Africa and Asia. They primarily eat plants.
The genus consists of two extant species:
- Indian star tortoise (G. elegans)
- Burmese star tortoise (G. platynota)
There are two extinct species that inhabited the Canary Islands:
- Tenerife giant tortoise (G. burchardi)[1]
- Gran Canaria giant tortoise (G. vulcanica)[2]
A number of tortoise species have been recently removed from the genus. This taxon as formerly defined was "polyphyletic, representing at least four independent clades".[3] Tortoises removed include members of Aldabrachelys (from the Seychelles and Madagascar), Astrochelys[4] (Madagascar), Chelonoidis (South America and the Galápagos Islands), Stigmochelys[4] (Africa) and earlier, the extinct genus Colossochelys (southern Asia).
"Self-righting" shell
The form of the shell of the Indian star tortoise resembles a gömböc, allowing it to turn over when lying upside down very easily.
References
- ↑ The Recently Extinct Plants and Animals Database Extinct Reptiles: Geochelone burchardi
- ↑ The Recently Extinct Plants and Animals Database Extinct Reptiles: Geochelone vulcanica
- ↑ Le, M.; Raxworthy, C. J.; McCord, W. P.; Mertz, L. (2006-05-05). "A molecular phylogeny of tortoises (Testudines: Testudinidae) based on mitochondrial and nuclear genes" (PDF). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 40 (2): 517–531. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2006.03.003. PMID 16678445.
- 1 2 Fritz, U.; Bininda-Emonds, O. R. P. (2007-07-03). "When genes meet nomenclature: Tortoise phylogeny and the shifting generic concepts of Testudo and Geochelone". Zoology. Elsevier. 110 (4): 298–307. doi:10.1016/j.zool.2007.02.003. PMID 17611092.
- Geochelone Report in Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved January 12, 2008.
External links
- Chaco tortoise media at ARKive
- Care tips
Tortoise family of turtles (Testudinidae) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Genus | Species of the tortoise family |  |
| Aldabrachelys | ||
| Astrochelys | ||
| Chelonoidis | ||
| Chersina | ||
| Centrochelys | ||
| Cylindraspis† | ||
| Geochelone | ||
| Gopherus |
| |
| Homopus | ||
| Indotestudo | ||
| Kinixys | ||
| Malacochersus | ||
| Manouria | ||
| Psammobates | ||
| Pyxis | ||
| Stigmochelys | ||
| Testudo | ||
Phylogenetic arrangement based on turtles of the world 2012 update: annotated checklist. Key: †=extinct. | ||
Extant turtle taxonomy | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Suborder | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Cryptodira | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Pleurodira | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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