Hydromedusa tectifera. Copulation.

LESCANO JN; MF BONINO ; GC LEYNAUD

HERPETOLOGICAL REVIEW

Herpetological Review

Año: 2007 vol. 38 p. 332 - 332

0018-084X

HYDROMEDUSA TECTIFERA (South American Snake-necked Turtle). COPULATION. The freshwater chelid 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 Monogr. 14). The province of Córdoba (central Argentina) is home to a population that is isolated from the species’ core distribution area and 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 in Córdoba. In all observations, males were on top of  females, grabbing then with the front and rear claws by the carapace edge, and continuously  biting the central region of the neck. Copulation lasted less than 60 minutes on all three occasions. After copulation, the male released the female, which then swam rapidly away. The first copulation was observed at 2100 h on 11 October 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 a depth of 40 cm, in a river section with sandy substrate, at a water temperature of 16.5ºC an air temperature of 10ºC. On 4 August 2006 (winter), we made a second observation, at 2015 h 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 a depth of 30 cm, on a rocky, well vegetated substrate. Water temperature was 9ºC and air temperature 3.5ºC. The third observation was made in Tanti stream (31º 21.2’S; 64º 33.9’W) at 1920 h on 5 September 2006 (winter). The specimens (carapace length 240 mm, male; 251.2 mm, female) were submerged at a depth of 90 cm, on a rocky bed with sand and submerged aquatic vegetation. Water and air temperatures were 17ºC and 20ºC, respectively. Hydromedusa tectifera is one of the least documented reptile species in Argentina, especially concerning aspects of its ecology. This is apparently the first description of copulation of this species in the wild.