Chelus
Sign in to saveChelus is a genus of large freshwater turtles found in tropical South America. Formerly considered to be a monotypic genus, it now consists of two extant species after Chelus orinocensis was identified in 2020 from a genetic analysis.
Species
GENUS
- KingdomAnimalia
- PhylumChordata
- ClassTestudines
- OrderTestudines
- FamilyChelidae
via GBIF
Wikidata facts
- Image
- 2009 Chelus fimbriatus.JPG
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- taxon name
- Chelus
- taxon common name
- เต่ามาตามาตา
- Commons category
- Chelus
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Article
3 sectionsContents
- Evolution
- Species
- References
Chelus is a genus of large freshwater turtles found in tropical South America. Formerly considered to be a monotypic genus, it now consists of two extant species after Chelus orinocensis was identified in 2020 from a genetic analysis.
== Evolution == Fossils of the extinct †C. colombianus have been found in Venezuela, Colombia, and Brazil, including a skull dating to the early Miocene (~ 16 m.y.) of the Castilletes Formation, Cocinetas Basin, in Colombia. The fossil shows that the skull morphology of Chelus has been almost unchanged since the Miocene.