Roti Island snake-necked turtle [SEP] IUCN conservation status
Roti Island snake-necked turtle
The Roti Island snake-necked turtle ("Chelodina mccordi" ), also commonly known as McCord's snakeneck turtle, is a critically endangered turtle species from Rote Island in Indonesia.
Taxonomy.
"Chelodina mccordi" belongs to the genus "Chelodina" (Australian snake-necked turtles) within the family Chelidae (Austro-South American side-necked turtles).
"Chelodina mccordi" was originally described from Rote Island but was later split into three subspecies. "Chelodina
The Roti Island snake-necked turtle is one of the most desired turtles in the international pet trade. Even before it was scientifically described it was so over-collected that the legal trade was prohibited in 2001 due to its rarity. The two or three remaining populations live in an area of only 70 km² (27 square miles) in the central highlands of Rote Island. It is still illegally captured and it is often offered on markets under the label of the New Guinea snake-necked turtle which is also legally