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- Title
ASPECTS OF THE ECOLOGY OF TWO TERRAPIN SPECIES (PELOMEDUSA GALEATA AND PELUSIOS SINUATUS) IN KWAZULU-NATAL, SOUTH AFRICA.
- Authors
Price, Cormac; O'Brien, Gordon; Willows-Munro, Sandi; Downs, Colleen T.
- Abstract
South Africa's freshwater systems are under increasing anthropogenic pressures due to a growing population, land-use change and climate change. It is important to understand how organisms reliant on wetland systems are coping with pressures to assess their ability to persist. There is a paucity of general knowledge of terrapin ecology in South Africa, despite their importance in freshwater ecosystems. Measures of movements, regularity, and activity regimes can provide valuable insights into an animal's behaviour, and what is required to ensure populations remain stable. Consequently, we investigated aspects of terrapin (Pelomedusa galeata and Pelusios sinuatus) ecology, using several different techniques. Ten individuals of each species had UHF tags attached to monitor movements and activity patterns at two different field sites in KwaZulu-Natal Province. This showed trends in individual behaviour/movement in relation to environmental variables, especially drought conditions. As well as the two telemetry sites, other sites throughout the province specimens from both species were permanently marked on their marginal scutes using a standardised numbering system, for the event of recapture. All specimens had bio-morphometric data collected to evaluate general condition, and a tissue sample was collected for genetic analysis. A total of 98 serrated hinged terrapins (not including dead specimens, which brought the total to 115) were captured and analysed. The total for marsh terrapin was 55 (not including dead specimens, which brought the total to 82). The capturing methods varied, and their success also varied at different sites. We present our findings on both species' ecology from areas of KZN. Our findings can aide in the conservation, and understanding of both species.
- Subjects
KWAZULU-Natal (South Africa); SOUTH Africa; TURTLES; HOME range (Animal geography); ANIMAL behavior; ECOLOGY; ENVIRONMENTALISM; SPECIES; EFFECT of human beings on climate change; WETLAND ecology
- Publication
African Herp News, 2019, Issue 72, p82
- ISSN
1017-6187
- Publication type
Article