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| Spiny Hill Terrapin (Heosemys spinosa), Bukit Timah Nature Reserve |
I had the most pleasant surprise of meeting my first Spiny Hill Terapin on 8 Jan 2013. My colleague spotted this beautiful creature after a heavy rain. Knowing that this was a rare sight, we took it into the office to record measurements and to take photographs. Unfortunately I only had my iPhone with me so I apologise for the grainy photos.
But before reading on, you might be asking, "what is the difference between a Turtle, Tortoise and a Terrapin?" Well, all three are reptiles and the main differences between each can be generally put as such: Turtles have webbed feet and live in the sea, tortoise have claws and live on land, and terrapins are turtles that live on land and near fresh or brackish water such as streams and ponds.
All three have similar structures which comprises mainly of the upper shell (carapace) and the lower shell (plastron). These shells are covered in hard protective plates called scutes. The patterns and arrangement of scutes, plus the overall look of the individual are often the first visual sign to aid identification in the field
In the case of the Spiny Hill Terrapin, the distinctive serrations along the margins of the carapace indicate that this is a juvenile. Adults will lose the deep serration for most of the margin, replacing them with a more rounded edge. Only slight serrations are left at the rear of the carapace.
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| Adult Spiny Hill Terrapin (photo from www.ecologyasia.com) |
This shy creature is a native of our forests and is the only true forest terrapin we have in Singapore. This terrapin is mainly a land dweller and is encountered on the forest floor sometimes not far away from water. We have not observed any for quite some time so it was an even greater joy to know that they are breeding. I found out yesterday that about the same time, another juvenile was spotted at another part of the Central Nature Reserve. Not much is known about their breeding habits but at least we know that this time of the year is when we can expect juveniles to be around.
We took measurements of the one at BTNR and he/she was tiny! (i am still unsure of the sex of this terrapin). The carapace length was 6.5cm and the weight was 48.9g. An adult can attain a carapace length of more than 20cm.
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| A closer look at the marginal serrations and the vertebral keel that runs down the centre of the carapace. (note the handy Moleskine grid notebook below!) |
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View of plastron. Note the reddish scutes on the feet.
After a quick round of photo-recording and measurements, we released it back into the reserve. Good luck little one, we look forward to seeing you again!
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great stuff lad
ReplyDeletewow, this a truly splendid, the way it camouflages is so majestic
ReplyDeleteits not a lizard mate
Deletetechnically they are
ReplyDeletewhat do you know bud
Deletecan we see some spiny lizards aswell please
ReplyDeletei would also love to see a spiny lizard, my grandson once saw one in nigeria
Deleteno way i went to nigeria once and saw a spiny lizard with a lad
Deletewhen did you go? my grandson went last year in the summer
Deleteget out of here, i went at the same time is his name wazza
Deleteyes, are you wazza? since were on here talking, id like to ask you why you came round to my house yesterday and shat in the toilet leaving a giant stool
ReplyDeletesorry i had a bad curry and i know that you want me to do it in the kitty litter to remind you of your dad cat so i will do that next time
ReplyDeleteyou better, tell the neighbours that the smell is just jewage because they keep asking
Deletei mean sewage
Deletealmost shat myself after reading that fist comment good correction
Deletehahahahahaha
hi, im just wondering when the spiny lizard forum will be put up, i got really excited
ReplyDeleteYou guys better pipe down and keep it friendly your spoiling the atmosphere of this post which is at heart us marveling in the beauty of nature especially that of which the Spiny Hill Terrapin.
ReplyDeletewow the Spiny Hill Terrapin is a looker for sure. Real slick!
ReplyDeleteif ur a mod u smell
ReplyDeleteHi, you guys were ruining the forum, please keep it respectful otherwise ill have to doxx you and find where you live
ReplyDeletei aint scared of no dox pal. Ive been round this internet rodea a fair few times and people like you dont scare me. ;0 im a grey hat hacker you know!
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteeveryone stay calm collected and careful, you dont want to leave this sort of thing on the internet. what if your future employer sees this
ReplyDeletekeep it civil lads. I just come on here to get all my blog news not for a war in the comments section. This is a place for discussion not petty arguments. Your better than this guys!
ReplyDeleteYeah you would say that stupid squirrel boi!
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ReplyDeletedont want to see you guys back here again. This community doesnt want you here! and neither does my country!!!!!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteDon't you dare post about spiny hill terrapin again. Bring back real reptiles!
ReplyDeletei love this animal its so cool
ReplyDeleteYo this terapin turtle kinda looks like our mascot
ReplyDeleteThis forum is on the US Federal Database Watchlist. If suspicious behavior continues, action will be taken
ReplyDeletenu uh pal. We in charge around here. This website is now on the CIA watchlist ignore the Seal Team losers!
ReplyDeleteHowdy! This forum is going crazy! I'd like to ask if you guys could keep it family friendly though please, my family looks on this forum!
ReplyDeletem8 get out of our private chatroom. nobody is that bothered about the snake with legs ono this post
Deletethis shi deads asf
ReplyDeletedoes this hurt the turtle?
ReplyDeleteHi guys, my grandads daughters only son passed away yesterday, and this forum really meant a lot to him, i'd appreciate if you'd say happy birthday to him, because today would've been his birthday, if he hadn't been molested and killed by an autistic child. Much love, Jake cockmeister
ReplyDeleteheil
ReplyDeleteYeah mate. Hate to be the bearer of bad news but nobody cares in the slightest. You think us wishing him a happy birthday is going to be bring him back. It ain't. Nothing will get better. There is no hope. What is the point anymore.
ReplyDeleteOCR (A) Biology A-level
ReplyDeleteTopic 3.2: Transport in animals
Notes
www.pmt.education
Circulatory systems
Circulatory systems can either be open, for instance in insects or closed, like in fish and
mammals where the blood is confined to blood vessels only. Closed circulatory systems
come in two forms, either a single form which consists of a heart with two chambers
meaning the blood passes through the heart once for every circuit of the body or double,
where the heart has four chambers and blood passes through the heart twice for every circuit
of the body.
Important structures and their functions
• Arteries – adapted to carrying blood away from the heart to the rest of the body,
thick walled to withstand high blood pressure, contain elastic tissue which allows
them to stretch and recoil thus smoothing blood flow, contain smooth muscle which
enables them to vary blood flow, lined with smooth endothelium to reduce friction
and ease flow of blood
• Arterioles – branch off arteries, have thinner and less muscular walls, their role is
to feed blood into capillaries
• Capillaries – smallest blood vessels, site of metabolic exchange, only one cell thick
for fast exchange of substances
• Venules – larger than capillaries but smaller than veins
• Veins – carry blood from the body to the heart, contain a wide lumen to maximise
volume of blood carried to the heart, thin walled as blood is under low pressure,
contain valves to prevent backflow of blood, no pulse of blood meaning there’s little
elastic tissue or smooth muscle as there is no need for stretching and recoiling
Tissue fluid is a liquid containing dissolved oxygen and nutrients which serves as a means
of supplying the tissues with the essential solutes in exchange for waste products such as
carbon dioxide. Therefore, it enables exchange of substances between blood and cells.
Hydrostatic pressure is created when blood is pumped along the arteries, into arterioles
and then capillaries. This pressure forces blood fluid out of the capillaries. Only substances
which are small enough to escape through the gaps in the capillary wall are components of
the tissue fluid – this includes dissolved nutrients and oxygen. The fluid is referred to as
tissue fluid, as described above.
The fluid is also acted on by osmotic pressure which pushes some of the fluid back into the
capillaries. As both the tissue fluid and blood contain solutes, they have a negative water
potential. Although the potential of the tissue fluid is negative, it is less negative in
comparison to the blood (the blood contains more solutes). Therefore, the tissue fluid is
www.pmt.education
positive in comparison to the blood. This causes water to move down the water potential
gradient from the tissue fluid to the blood by osmosis.
The remaining tissue fluid which is not pushed back into the capillaries is carried back via the
lymphatic system. The lymphatic system contains lymph fluid, similar in content to tissue
fluid. However, lymph fluid contains less oxygen and nutrients compared to tissue fluid, as
its main purpose is to carry waste products. The lymph system also contains lymph nodes
which filter out bacteria and foreign material from the fluid with the help of lymphocytes
which destroy the invaders as part of the immune system defences.
Mammalian heart and cardiac cycle
Due to the heart’s ability to initiate its own contraction, it is referred to as myogenic. In the
wall of the right atrium there is a region of specialised fibres called the sinoatrial node
which is the pacemaker of the heart, as it initiates a wave of electrical stimulation which
causes the atria to contract at roughly the same time.
Looks Yummy
ReplyDelete