Meet the Zoo: Chinese Big Headed Turtle
These feisty turtles have heads so large, they can't withdraw them into their shells.
Huge, mysterious dragons are popular in Chinese mythology, and yet, there is a real animal from China that is just as amazing and scaly. At the Prospect Park Zoo, visitors can marvel at an unusual and rarely displayed turtle, the Chinese big headed turtle.
While only one animal is ever on exhibit, the Prospect Park Zoo houses three in an effort to breed them. Two females, Nicole and Tyra, and a male, Jayleno, rotate their time in the exhibit space in the Animals in Art area where visitors can get a close-up view of these small turtles with very large heads.
Their oversized heads make them incapable of withdrawing their heads into their shells like other turtles. To make up for this, their skull is nearly solid bone and the top and side of their head is covered with tough scute – the same type of bony plate that makes up a turtle’s shell. Their wide sharp beak is covered with scales for further protection.
At the appropriate time, Jayleno and one of the females will be paired up in a special reptile area in the zoo called the hybernaculum, which is a fancy word for winter quarters, to promote breeding activity. At 12 or more years old (the exact hatch dates are unknown) these animals are in prime breeding age.
The colors of the big headed turtle are soft coppery browns and greens, helping it blend in with the mountain stream beds of its native habitat. Its bright black eyes have a golden iris that seems to sparkle as it gazes at visitors. Those who touch the glass to point at the turtle have often been startled by a gaping mouthed lunge by this little feisty animal – no matter which one is in the exhibit.
Featuring strong clawed feet and a whip-like tail, these turtles are literally in a class by themselves. Their taxonomy, or science classification, is platysternidae, and they are the only animal in that family. Hopefully, they will soon add to the zoo family with a clutch of eggs that could hatch into tiny turtles.
They are unique in the wonderful world of turtles and definitely one of the more unusual sights at our zoo.
While only one animal is ever on exhibit, the Prospect Park Zoo houses three in an effort to breed them. Two females, Nicole and Tyra, and a male, Jayleno, rotate their time in the exhibit space in the Animals in Art area where visitors can get a close-up view of these small turtles with very large heads.
Their oversized heads make them incapable of withdrawing their heads into their shells like other turtles. To make up for this, their skull is nearly solid bone and the top and side of their head is covered with tough scute – the same type of bony plate that makes up a turtle’s shell. Their wide sharp beak is covered with scales for further protection.
At the appropriate time, Jayleno and one of the females will be paired up in a special reptile area in the zoo called the hybernaculum, which is a fancy word for winter quarters, to promote breeding activity. At 12 or more years old (the exact hatch dates are unknown) these animals are in prime breeding age.
The colors of the big headed turtle are soft coppery browns and greens, helping it blend in with the mountain stream beds of its native habitat. Its bright black eyes have a golden iris that seems to sparkle as it gazes at visitors. Those who touch the glass to point at the turtle have often been startled by a gaping mouthed lunge by this little feisty animal – no matter which one is in the exhibit.
Featuring strong clawed feet and a whip-like tail, these turtles are literally in a class by themselves. Their taxonomy, or science classification, is platysternidae, and they are the only animal in that family. Hopefully, they will soon add to the zoo family with a clutch of eggs that could hatch into tiny turtles.
They are unique in the wonderful world of turtles and definitely one of the more unusual sights at our zoo.
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