August Friedrich Schweigger first described the turtle in 1812, based on remnants found in Senegal by French botanist Michel Adanson, for whom Schweigger named the new species as Emys andansonii.[4][5]
Although Adanson's mud turtle does not seem to be at risk of becoming an endangered species, destruction of its habitat (largely due to farming) and hunting by humans have both reduced its population.[4][6] Hunting by humans persists despite local laws forbidding the activity in some of the countries in which the turtle is found.[4]
Adanson's mud turtle is a medium-sized turtle that lives in freshwater. The turtle's shell can grow up to 238 mm (9.4 in) (straight carapace length) and is known to be sharp and rigid, with dark brown spots and dashes. The ventral part of the shell (plastron) is yellow.[6]
A refuge for Adanson's mud turtle has taken place in the wetland area on the northwest side of Guiers Lake in northern Senegal and it covers about 750 acres (1.17 sq mi). It is the first refuge of its kind that is dedicated to the conservation of Adanson's mud turtle and its nesting and foraging habits. It was created with the help of the Turtle Survival Alliance (TSA Africa) and the Ministry of Environment and Nature Protection of Senegal.[7]
^ abcBour, Roger (30 June 2008). "Pelusios adansonii (Schweigger 1812) – Adanson's Mud Turtle". Conservation Biology of Freshwater Turtles and Tortoises. Chelonian Research Monographs. 5. Chelonian Research Foundation: 017.1–017.4. doi:10.3854/crm.5.017.adansonii.v1.2008.
^Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN978-1-4214-0135-5. (Pelusios adansonii, pp. 1-2).
Schweigger [AF] (1812). "Prodromus Monographia Cheloniorum ". Königsberger Archiv für Naturwissenschaft und Mathematik1: 271–368, 406–458. (Emys adansonii, new species, pp. 308–309). (in Latin).
Data related to Pelusios adansonii at Wikispecies
