SREL Reprint #3150

Three New Subspecies of Trachemys venusta (Testudines: Emydidae) from Honduras, Northern Yucatan (Mexico), and Pacific Coastal Panama

William P. McCord1, Mehdi Joseph-Ouni2, Cris Hagen3, and Torsten Blanck4

1East Fishkill Animal Hospital, Hopewell Junction, NY, USA
2EO Wildlife & Wilderness Conservation, Brooklyn NY, USA
3Savannah River Ecology Laboratory, Aiken, SC, USA
4Forstgartenstr 44, Deutschlandsberg, Austria

Abstract: Upon examination of live and preserved specimens from across the species range, several unnamed distinct forms of Trachemys venusta (Gray, 1855) were recognized, leading to the description here of three biogeographically isolated, morphologically distinct subspecies: Trachemys venusta uhrigi ssp. nov., Trachemys venusta iversoni ssp. nov., and Trachemys venusta panamensis ssp. nov. Head and neck stripes, along with carapacial and plastral patterns are critical to identification in this group. Formal descriptions and diagnoses are given herein. Other Central American Trachemys are also discussed for comparison.

SREL Reprint #3150

McCord, W. P., M. Joseph-Ouni, C. Hagen, and T. Blanck. 2010. Three New Subspecies of Trachemys venusta (Testudines: Emydidae) from Honduras, Northern Yucatan (Mexico), and Pacific Coastal Panama. Reptilia 71: 39-49.

This information was provided by the University of Georgia's Savannah River Ecology Laboratory (srel.uga.edu).