Species of the Day: Central American River Turtle The Central American River Turtle, Dermatemys mawii, is listed as ‘Critically Endangered’ on the IUCN Red List of Threatened SpeciesTM. The last remaining representative of a turtle family dating back 65 million years, this unique species reaches a shell length of up to 60 cm.
Geographical range
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It is entirely aquatic, inhabiting rivers, lagoons, and other large wetlands in southern Mexico, Guatemala, and Belize. It is barely able to move on land, and rather than emerging onto land to nest, females instead construct nests at the waterline during floods, and the eggs only begin developing after the water level has dropped. This species is highly esteemed for local consumption, and intensive collection, particularly ahead of festivals, has depleted populations severely across most or all of its range. It is protected or regulated in all range countries and under CITES, but local enforcement is largely lacking. Increased public awareness, population recovery efforts, and improved enforcement to prevent overexploitation are all urgently needed.
Species of the Day is sponsored by
The production of the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™ is made possible through the IUCN Red List Partnership: IUCN (including the Species Survival Commission), BirdLife International, Conservation International, NatureServe and Zoological Society of London.