D'Orbigny's slider or the black-bellied slider (''Trachemys dorbigni''), commonly known in

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

as ''tartaruga-tigre'' or ''tartaruga-tigre-d'água'' (which mean "tiger turtle" and "water tiger turtle" in Portuguese), is a

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

of water turtle in the

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Emydidae Emydidae (Latin (freshwater tortoise) + Ancient Greek (, "appearance, resemblance")) is a family of testudines (turtles) that includes close to 50 species in 10 genera. Members of this family are commonly called terrapins, pond turtles, or mar ...

. The species is found in southern

, northeastern

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

, and

Uruguay Uruguay, officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay, is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast, while bordering the Río de la Plata to the south and the A ...

. Two

subspecies In Taxonomy (biology), biological classification, subspecies (: subspecies) is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (Morphology (biology), morpholog ...

(in addition to the

nominate subspecies In biological classification, subspecies (: subspecies) is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics ( morphology), but that can successfully interbreed. ...

) are recognized as being valid, '' Trachemys dorbigni adiutrix'' and '' Trachemys dorbigni brasiliensis''.

Etymology

The

specific name Specific name may refer to: * in Database management systems, a system-assigned name that is unique within a particular database In taxonomy, either of these two meanings, each with its own set of rules: * Specific name (botany), the two-part (bino ...

, ''dorbigni'', is in honor of French

naturalist Natural history is a domain of inquiry involving organisms, including animals, fungi, and plants, in their natural environment, leaning more towards observational than experimental methods of study. A person who studies natural history is cal ...

Alcide d'Orbigny Alcide Charles Victor Marie Dessalines d'Orbigny (6 September 1802 – 30 June 1857) was a French naturalist who made major contributions in many areas, including zoology (including malacology), palaeontology, geology, archaeology and anthropol ...

.Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson Michael (2011). ''The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles''. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. . (''Trachemys dorbigni'', p. 195).

Description

The form of the

plastron The turtle shell is a shield for the ventral and dorsal parts of turtles (the Order (biology), order Testudines), completely enclosing all the turtle's vital organs and in some cases even the head. It is constructed of modified bony elements such ...

determines its

gender Gender is the range of social, psychological, cultural, and behavioral aspects of being a man (or boy), woman (or girl), or third gender. Although gender often corresponds to sex, a transgender person may identify with a gender other tha ...

. After a few years of life, show differences between male and female. Males have a

penis A penis (; : penises or penes) is a sex organ through which male and hermaphrodite animals expel semen during copulation (zoology), copulation, and through which male placental mammals and marsupials also Urination, urinate. The term ''pen ...

that is inserted into the tail. It becomes apparent only during the mating season when it is inserted into the female's

cloaca A cloaca ( ), : cloacae ( or ), or vent, is the rear orifice that serves as the only opening for the digestive (rectum), reproductive, and urinary tracts (if present) of many vertebrate animals. All amphibians, reptiles, birds, cartilagin ...

. D'Orbigny's slider has a life span of between 30 and 100 years in captivity. They are usually found in water bodies such as lakes, marshes, streams and rivers. They have a preference for waters with low or moderate currents, soft bottoms and abundant aquatic vegetation. Babies are born weighing with a

carapace A carapace is a dorsal (upper) section of the exoskeleton or shell in a number of animal groups, including arthropods, such as crustaceans and arachnids, as well as vertebrates, such as turtles and tortoises. In turtles and tortoises, the unde ...

. The average growth rate is about per year on wild, but in captivity it can grow faster being able to grow over in a year. The females can grow up to carapace and weight over , while the male can only grow carapace. When the males reach sexual maturity (after 2 years), they acquire a dark color while the females keep the same green after maturity (at 5 years).

Sexual dimorphism

The sex identification is only possible when adult, at 5 or 6 years. The female is bigger and may reach in length and has the bottom of the shell (plastron) slightly

convex Convex or convexity may refer to: Science and technology * Convex lens, in optics Mathematics * Convex set, containing the whole line segment that joins points ** Convex polygon, a polygon which encloses a convex set of points ** Convex polytop ...

so as to provide more space for eggs. The male reaches and has a longer and bulky tail, furthermore, the male bottom of the shell is straight or slightly

concave Concave or concavity may refer to: Science and technology * Concave lens * Concave mirror Mathematics * Concave function, the negative of a convex function * Concave polygon A simple polygon that is not convex is called concave, non-convex or ...

to fit better upon females. The male's cloaca is located 2/3 the distance between the tail beginning and the shell, while the female is very close to the shell.

Reproduction

Females produce an average of 10 eggs per buried nest; usually they bury two nests per season. Incubation ranges from 2 to 4 months. The eggs are laid under approximately of sand. The eggs are white-colored. Each egg on average measures in length and in width, weighing on average . Only 31% of the female population lays egg each year. The sex of baby turtles is determined by the temperature of the sand during incubation, lower temperatures increase the number of females.

Diseases

The turtles are susceptible to diseases such as

pneumonia Pneumonia is an Inflammation, inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as Pulmonary alveolus, alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of Cough#Classification, productive or dry cough, ches ...

dystocia Obstructed labour, also known as labour dystocia, is the baby not exiting the pelvis because it is physically blocked during childbirth although the uterus contracts normally. Complications for the baby include not getting enough oxygen which ...

, bone

decalcification Bone decalcification is the softening of bones due to the removal of calcium ions, and can be performed as a histological technique to study bones and extract DNA. This process also occurs naturally during bone development and growth, and when uninh ...

vitamin deficiency Vitamin deficiency is the condition of a long-term lack of a vitamin. When caused by not enough vitamin intake it is classified as a ''primary deficiency'', whereas when due to an underlying disorder such as malabsorption it is called a ''second ...

gastroenteritis Gastroenteritis, also known as infectious diarrhea, is an inflammation of the Human gastrointestinal tract, gastrointestinal tract including the stomach and intestine. Symptoms may include diarrhea, vomiting, and abdominal pain. Fever, lack of ...

, and

prolapse In medicine, prolapse is a condition in which organ (anatomy), organs fall down or slip out of place. It is used for organs protruding through the vagina, rectum, or for the misalignment of the valves of the heart. A spinal disc herniation is al ...

s. Pet owners must avoid using small objects as decoration in their tank, because they tend to eat everything they can. Such small objects, such as pebbles and plastic decorations, may lead to gut impaction, which is very likely to require surgical intervention. Despite being very hardy, they may have rachitis, a disease that makes the shell soft due to protein deficiency. It may be corrected by adding protein to meals, especially through fish. Placing turtles in abrasive surfaces can also cause injuries to the plastron, which provide an entrance point to

fungi A fungus (: fungi , , , or ; or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and mold (fungus), molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as one ...

and

bacteria Bacteria (; : bacterium) are ubiquitous, mostly free-living organisms often consisting of one Cell (biology), biological cell. They constitute a large domain (biology), domain of Prokaryote, prokaryotic microorganisms. Typically a few micr ...

. Allowing the animal to maintain its temperature around an optimal point (between 28 and 34 degrees Celsius) is a necessity. Providing the turtles with daily sun light or special UV light so that they can properly metabolize

vitamin D Vitamin D is a group of structurally related, fat-soluble compounds responsible for increasing intestinal absorption of calcium, magnesium, and phosphate, along with numerous other biological functions. In humans, the most important compo ...

will avoid metabolic issues.

Diet

These

omnivorous An omnivore () is an animal that regularly consumes significant quantities of both plant and animal matter. Obtaining energy and nutrients from plant and animal matter, omnivores digest carbohydrates, protein, fat, and fiber, and metabolize ...

turtles can eat almost anything in nature shrimps, vegetables, fruit, carrion, small fishes, snails, worms, etc. During the first two years of life these turtles are mainly carnivorous, eating small animals and carrion, but then they switch to being mainly vegetarian eating more vegetables and algae then meat.

Diet in captivity

For pet keepers it is recommended that you feed them more than once every day in the first two-years, then shift to feeding once every two days.

Protection

Brazil

This species can be owned only with specific documentation. The purchase invoice must contain the popular and

scientific name In Taxonomy (biology), taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, both of which use Latin gramm ...

, and designate the number of animals. Also required is a certificate of origin, invoice number and the number of commercial breeding of wildlife as recorded in the Brazilian

IBAMA The Brazilian Institute of the Environment and Renewable Natural Resources ( Portuguese: ''Instituto Brasileiro do Meio Ambiente e dos Recursos Naturais Renováveis'', IBAMA) is a government agency under the administration of the Brazilian Minis ...

. It is forbidden to release the animals in nature and is subject to the penalties provided in the law No. 6.938/81 and No. 9.605/98. If the owner can no longer keep it, the store that made the sale is obliged to take the animal back, the animal will be shipped back to the only farm allowed to breed them in Brazil.

Uruguay

In Uruguay turtles can only be owned with specific documentation and, as they are a protected species, commercialization is forbidden.

References

Bibliography

* {{Taxonbar, from=Q2158286 Trachemys Turtles of South America Turtles of Brazil Reptiles of Argentina Reptiles of Uruguay Reptiles described in 1835 Taxa named by André Marie Constant Duméril Taxa named by Gabriel Bibron Taxobox binomials not recognized by IUCN