Mauremys japonica

Taxobox
name = Mauremys japonica


image_size = 250px
image_caption = Japanese Pond Turtle (Mauremys japonica)
status = LR/nt
status_system = iucn2.3
regnum = Animalia
phylum = Chordata
classis = Sauropsida
ordo = Testudines
subordo = Cryptodira
superfamilia = Testudinoidea
familia = Geoemydidae
subfamilia = Geoemydinae
genus = "Mauremys"
species = "M. japonica"
binomial = "Mauremys japonica"
binomial_authority = (Temminck & Schlegel "in" Siebold, 1835)
synonyms =

"Mauremys japonica" is a species of turtle in the family Geoemydidae (=Bataguridae). It is endemic to Japan.Its Japanese name is nihon ishigame that means japanese stone turtle. Its population has decreased somewhat due to habitat loss, but it is not yet considered a threatened species.

This species is known to hybridize with the Chinese Pond Turtle, the Chinese Stripe-necked Turtle and the Chinese box turtle (and possibly other Geoemydidae) in captivity. As these three species are much rarer and strongly declining in the wild, this should be avoided. [Buskirk "et al." (2005)]

Footnotes

References

*|year=2000|id=39612|title=Mauremys japonica|downloaded=29 July 2007
* (2005): On the hybridisation between two distantly related Asian turtles (Testudines: "Sacalia" × "Mauremys"). "Salamandra" 41: 21-26. [http://cc.usu.edu/~crfeldman/Buskirk_et_al_05.pdf PDF fulltext]