Morphological characteristics of the four-eyed turtle
Four-eyed turtle< /p>

The four-eyed water turtle is average in size, with a maximum nail length of nearly 20 centimeters. However, turtles that are rare in the market are mostly 8-12 centimeters. The body of the turtle is relatively flat, the back of the head is smooth, and the edges and corners are significant. The center of the upper beak is slightly "W" shaped, and the edge of the beak is thin and sharp. The carapace is oblong in shape, with a prominent central ridge and smooth edges, not jagged.

The four-eyed turtle is of medium size. The skin on the top of the head is smooth and scale-free, the upper beak is not hook-shaped, there are 2 pairs of eye spots on the back of the head, each eye spot has a black dot, and there is a vertical stripe on the neck. Its carapace is brown and mottled, and its rear edge is not serrated or slightly serrated. The plastron is light yellow, and each scute has black large and small spots. The carapace and plastron are connected by bone seams. Fingers; webbed between toes.

When the larvae are young, the carapace is round and frame-shaped, with a high central ridge, like a roof ridge, and slightly toothed edges. The plastron is oval, with a triangular shallow depression at the rear. The hands and feet are relatively flat and slender, with tiny scales, and there are 3-4 large stacked scales on the outside of the forelimbs. There are webs between the fingers and toes, the claws are slender and sharp, and the tail is moderate. The back of the head and back of the young turtle is yellow-brown or dark olive, and the skin on the back of the neck is slightly darker. The color of the head and back changes to dark brown or dark olive when it grows into adults. There are two pairs of eye spots on the occiput of the head, smaller at the front and larger at the back.

Most experts believe that the color of eye spots is determined by gender. Females are yellow and males are olive. There are dark straight thin stripes on the left and right sides of the bill of the four-eyed turtle, which looks like there are many wrinkles on the mouth. There are three yellow or orange stripes from the nape of the neck to the base of the neck. There are radial lines on the carapace when young, which will disappear when they grow up. It also develops small dark freckles, but they are not as detailed as the insect-shaped patterns of the eye-spotted turtle. The density of the insect-shaped patterns is related to the individual characteristics of the turtle. For example, in some cases, the insect-shaped patterns are only distributed around the plastron.


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