''Emydura'', also known commonly as the Australian short-necked turtles, is a

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

turtle Turtles are reptiles of the order (biology), order Testudines, characterized by a special turtle shell, shell developed mainly from their ribs. Modern turtles are divided into two major groups, the Pleurodira (side necked turtles) and Crypt ...

s 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 ...

Chelidae Chelidae is one of three living families of the turtle suborder Pleurodira, and are commonly called Austro-South American side-neck turtles. The family is distributed in Australia, New Guinea, parts of Indonesia, and throughout most of South Amer ...

. The genus was

paraphyletic Paraphyly is a taxonomic term describing a grouping that consists of the grouping's last common ancestor and some but not all of its descendant lineages. The grouping is said to be paraphyletic ''with respect to'' the excluded subgroups. In co ...

with '' Elseya''. Consequently, it was split into two

genera Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family as used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In binomial nomenclature, the genus name forms the first part of the binomial s ...

'' Myuchelys'' and ''Elseya'' by Thomson and Georges in 2009.Thomson, S. & Georges, A. (2009) ''Myuchelys'' gen. nov. —a new genus for ''Elseya latisternum'' and related forms of Australian freshwater turtle (

Testudines Turtles are reptiles of the order (biology), order Testudines, characterized by a special turtle shell, shell developed mainly from their ribs. Modern turtles are divided into two major groups, the Pleurodira (side necked turtles) and Crypt ...

Pleurodira The Pleurodira are one of the two living suborders of turtles, the other being the Cryptodira. The division between these two suborders represents a very deep evolutionary divide between two very different types of turtles. The physical differ ...

)

Zootaxa ''Zootaxa'' is a peer-reviewed scientific mega journal for animal taxonomists. It is published by Magnolia Press (Auckland, New Zealand). The journal was established by Zhi-Qiang Zhang in 2001 and new issues are published multiple times a week ...

2053: 32–42. Turtles of the genus ''Emydura'' can grow quite large, or more is not unusual, and have a life span of around 20–30 years. They generally do not hibernate as their warmer climate lets them remain active all year round; they also spend more time in the water than other turtles. They are considered omnivorous but rely on a constant supply of meat to remain healthy, feeding on basically anything that will fit into their mouth. They are characterised by a white stripe starting at the nose and leading down the neck, as well as a more ridged shell. In Australia, the public require a basic reptiles licence to purchase these turtles; taking from the wild is strictly prohibited.

Species

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), ...

and notable

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 ...

arranged according to most recent review of Georges & Thomson, 2010 with some modification after Kehlmaier et al. 2019Kehlmaier, C., Zhang, X., Georges, A., Campbell, P.D., Thomson, S., & Fritz, U. 2019. Mitogenomics of historical type specimens of Australasian turtles: clarification of taxonomic confusion and old mitochondrial introgression. Scientific Reports (2019) 9:5841 , https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-019-42310-x are: * Northern red-faced turtle, '' Emydura australis'', (Gray, 1841) * '' Emydura gunaleni'', Smales, McCord, Cann, & Joseph-Ouni, 2019 * Macquarie turtle, '' Emydura macquarii'', (Gray, 1830)Gray, J.E. 1830. A synopsis of the species of the class Reptilia. pp 1–110 in Griffith, E. The animal kingdom arranged in conformity with its organisation by the Baron Cuvier. London: Whitaker and Treacher and Co. 9:481 + 110pp. ** Murray river turtle, ''Emydura macquarii macquarii'' ** Krefft's turtle, ''Emydura macquarii krefftii'' ** Fraser island short-neck turtle, ''Emydura macquarii nigra'' ** Cooper creek turtle, ''Emydura macquarii emmotti'' * Red-bellied short-necked turtle or Jardine River Turtle, '' Emydura subglobosa'', (Krefft 1876) Krefft, G. 1876. Notes on Australian animals in New Guinea with description of a new freshwater tortoise belonging to the genus ''Euchelymys''. Annali del Museo Civico di Storia Naturale de Genova. 1:390-394. ** Red-bellied short-necked turtle, ''Emydura subglobosa subglobosa'' ** Worrell's short-necked turtle, ''Emydura subglobosa worrelli'' * Northern yellow-faced turtle, '' Emydura tanybaraga'', Cann, 1997Cann, J. 1997. The northern yellow-faced turtle. Monitor 9(1):24-29, 34–35. * Victoria river red-faced turtle, '' Emydura victoriae'', (Gray 1841)Gray, J.E. 1841. Description of some hitherto unrecorded species of Australian reptiles and batrachians. pp 51–57. in Gray, J.E. Zoological Miscellaney. London: Treutal, Wurtz and Co. file:Krefft's River Turtle2.jpg, Kreftt's river turtle

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q2710616 Turtle genera Taxa named by Charles Lucien Bonaparte Taxonomy articles created by Polbot Turtles of Australia