Hydromedusa tectifera. Copulation.

LESCANO JULIAN N.; BONINO MARCELO; LEYNAUD GERARDO C.

HERPETOLOGICAL REVIEW

SSAR Publications

Año: 2007 vol. 38 p. 332 - 332

0018-084X

The fresh-water turtle Hydromedusa tectifera is distributed in rivers and streams of northeastern Argentina, Paraguay, eastern and southeastern Brazil, and part of Uruguay (Cei 1993, Mus. Reg. Sci. Nat. Torino Monograph, n° 14). The province of Córdoba (central Argentina) is home to a population that is isolated from the species? core distribution area and that inhabits streams in the central region of the Sierras. (Cabrera 1998, Las Tortugas Continentales de Sudamérica Austral. Privately printed, Córdoba, Argentina, 108 pp.). We report three observations of copulation of this species in two streams of Córdoba. In all the observations, males were on top of females, grabbing them with the front and rear claws by the carapace edge, and continuously biting the central region of the neck. Males folded the tail to have it closer to the tail of the female. Copulation lasted less than 60 minutes on the three occasions. After copulation, the male released the female, which rapidly swam away. The first copulation was observed at 21:00 on October 11, 2005 (spring) in Toro Muerto stream (31º 23.5´ S; 64º 35.8´ W). The specimens (carapace length 243 mm, male; 257 mm, female) were submerged at 40 cm in depth, in a river sector with sandy soils, water temperature of 16.5° C and air temperature of 10°C. On August 4, 2006 (winter), we made a second observation, at 20:15 in Toro Muerto stream (31º 22.7´ S, 64º 36.3´ W). The specimens (carapace length 264.6 mm, male; 256.9 mm, female) were submerged at 30 cm in depth, on a rocky and plant-covered bed. Water temperature was 9°C and air temperature 3.5°C. The third observation was made in Tanti stream (31º 21.2´ S; 64º 33.9´ W) at 19:20 on September 5, 2006 (winter). The specimens (carapace length 240 mm, male; 251.2 mm female) were submerged at 90 cm in depth, on a rocky bed with sand and submerged aquatic vegetation. Water and air temperatures were 17 °C and 20 °C, respectively. The fresh-water turtle Hydromedusa tectifera is one of the least documented reptile species in Argentina, especially in its ecological aspects. This is the first description of copulation aspects of this species in the wild.