Podocnemis unifilis Troschel, 1848

Llanqui, Irbin B., Y. Salas, Cinthya & Oblitas, Melissa P., 2019, A preliminary checklist of amphibians and reptiles from the vicinity of La Nube Biological Station, Bahuaja-Sonene National Park, Peru, Check List 15 (5), pp. 773-796 : 791

Podocnemis unifilis Troschel, 1848

Material examined. Field observation; (13°24′18″S, 069° 37′04″W), 22.IX.2013.

Identification. A large freshwater turtle, up to 50 cm in carapace length. It can be readily identified by the dull grayish brown carapace. Juveniles show distinctive cream or orange spots on the head which gradually vanish in maturity, especially in females. Podocnemis unifilis is commonly observed in groups along borders of rivers and lakes. There are no similar turtle species in adjacent localities ( Duellman 2005, Rueda-Almonacid et al. 2007, Schneider et al. 2012).

Distribution. Podocnemis unifilis is widely distributed in Amazonia in Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Peru and Venezuela (Rueda- Almonacid et al. 2007, van Dijk et al. 2012, Cole et al. 2013, Uetz and Hošek 2019).