Back

Orinoco Matamata

Chelus orinocensis

Classification

Order
Family
Chelidae

Chelus orinocensis, the Orinoco mata mata, is a species of freshwater turtle found in northern South America in the Orinoco, upper Rio Negro–Branco and Essequibo basins, and in Trinidad. It was split off from the very similar Chelus fimbriata in 2020. Taxonomy A genetic analysis of the mata mata was reported in 2020, which showed a deep split between two of its populations.

Distribution

(c) Sheelagh Halsey, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC-BY
Loading map…
Countries in the Picchu catalog
Brazil · 1