About Lissemys punctata (Bonnaterre, 1789)
The scientific name of this species is Lissemys punctata (Bonnaterre, 1789), commonly called the Indian flapshell turtle. In adult Indian flapshell turtles, the carapace viewed from above is broadly oval, while juvenile carapaces are more circular. The carapace is widest just in front of the hind limbs. The disc width measures 77–86% of its length, and the carapace is moderately arched, with a shell height that equals 35.0–40.5% of carapace length. The carapace margin is smooth and slightly flared toward the posterior; marginal bones are not joined to the pleurals. The plastron is large, mostly cartilaginous, and its length measures 88–97% of the carapace length. This species has a pair of large flaps that can close over the hind limbs, plus a smaller flap that covers the tail. There are seven plastral callosities present. The head is large, with a width that measures 21–25% of the carapace width. The nose is short and stout, the nasal septum has no lateral ridge, the jaw edges are smooth, and the alveolar surfaces are expanded and granular. The claws are large and heavy. The penis is thick and oval, with a deep dorsal cleft and four pointed, soft papillae. The tail is very short in both sexes. Recorded adult carapace length ranges from 240 to 370 mm (9.4 to 14.6 in). Males can reach a maximum size of up to 23 cm (9 in), while females can reach a maximum size of around 35 cm (14 in). This species is naturally distributed across Pakistan, India (where it is common in lakes and rivers), Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh (in the Indus and Ganges drainages), and Myanmar (in the Irrawaddy and Salween Rivers). It has been introduced to the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. It also inhabits the desert ponds of Rajasthan, where hundreds of individuals are killed every year during dry summers. The subspecies Lissemys punctata andersoni occurs in Bangladesh, India, Nepal, and Pakistan. In 2020, a farmer found a yellow flapshell turtle believed to be an albino morph of this species. Miocene-age fossils of this species have been found in Nepal. The original type locality was listed as "Des grandes Indes" (meaning continental India); this was restricted to Pondicherry, Coromandel Coast, India (11° 56'N; 79° 53'E, on the southeast coast of India) by Webb in 1980. Lissemys punctata lives in shallow, quiet, often stagnant water bodies including rivers, streams, marshes, ponds, lakes, irrigation canals, and tanks. It prefers waters with sand or mud bottoms, because this turtle tends to burrow. It plays an important role in reducing pollution in aquatic ecosystems by feeding on snails, insects, and fragments of dead animals. The Indian flapshell turtle is omnivorous. Its natural diet includes frogs, shrimp, snails, aquatic vegetation, plant leaves, flowers, fruits, grasses, and seeds. There is a widespread unproven belief that the shell of Lissemys punctata has medicinal value; the shell is sometimes ground into powder for use in traditional medicines, but no scientific evidence of this claimed efficacy has been found. This false belief enables illegal smuggling of the species, as smugglers rely on the myth to sell turtle products.
