+44-1518-081136- International Journal of Pure and Applied Zoology (2016) Volume 4, Issue 1
Comparative Morphometry and Biogeography of The Freshwater Turtles of Genus Pangshura (Testudines: Geoemydidae: Pangshura)
The present paper reports multivariate morphometric analyses for a total of 178 individuals of the Southeast Asian freshwater turtle genus Pangshura including 80 numbers of live and 98 numbers of museum specimens. Allometric change in the body size was examined in the live collected as well as compared with various reptile museums and private collections. The comparative study on live and museum specimens revealed that male and female individuals of all the four species of Pangshura can be identified by sexual dimorphism. The frequency of the morphometric measurements among and within Pangshura species reveales that distinct sexual dimorphism in each species of Pangshura is well observed. Males are always smaller in size than the females. The present observations have revealed that P. sylhetensis is the smallest species under the genus Pangshura, which may reach a carapace length up to 20.5 cm. The present study for the first time has been able to present a diagrammatic representation of P. sylhetensis with plastral formula. Support for recognition of these taxa provides a scenario of the systematics, distribution and natural history of the genus Pangshura.
Author(s): Chittaranjan Baruah*, Papari Devi, and D.K. Sharma