Top 10 turtle species ranking

Turtle (biē) is a general term for soft-shell turtles in the family Trionychidae, belonging to the suborder Trionychidae under the order Testudinata. It is commonly known in Chinese as turtle, round fish, water fish, mud turtle, and Wangba. The origin of turtles can be traced back to the late Jurassic period about 150 million years ago. It first appeared in Asia and expanded to North America and Africa in the middle of the Paleocene about 60 million years ago. They usually live in freshwater environments such as rivers, ponds, and rice fields. Today, there are about 30 species in the family Trionychidae, some of which are the largest freshwater turtles in existence. The main turtles in China are Chinese soft-shell turtle, mountain soft-shell turtle and spotted soft-shell turtle, among which Chinese soft-shell turtle is the most common.

Soft-shell turtles are often eaten by humans as tonics because of their delicious meat and high nutritional value. Some species are endangered. So, what are the most valuable turtles in the world? Common turtles include Chinese soft-shelled turtle, giant soft-shelled turtle, pearl soft-shelled turtle, mountain soft-shelled turtle, Asian soft-shelled turtle, Indian soft-shelled turtle, Malay soft-shelled turtle, Burmese peacock soft-shelled turtle, horned soft-shelled turtle, African three-clawed soft-shelled turtle, etc. Next, we will take you to learn about the top ten turtles in the world and explore more well-known water fish species and their characteristics.

1. Chinese soft-shelled turtle (a more common farmed turtle species)

In China, common soft-shelled turtles include Chinese soft-shelled turtle, which is also called water fish, soft-shelled turtle or round fish, belonging to the family Testudinata. Chinese soft-shelled turtle is one of the common farmed turtle species, widely distributed in China, Japan, northern Vietnam, South Korea and eastern Russia. Chinese soft-shelled turtles are widely distributed in my country. Except for Xinjiang, Tibet and Qinghai, they are distributed in other provinces, especially in Hunan, Hubei, Jiangxi, Anhui and Jiangsu provinces, with high production.

The Chinese soft-shell turtle mainly lives in freshwater waters with sandy and muddy bottoms, and likes to go ashore to bask in the sun. Their food is mainly fish, shrimp, mollusks, etc., and they usually forage at night. The body length of the Chinese soft-shell turtle is about 30 cm, and the life span can be more than 60 years.

2. Yangtze giant soft-shell turtle (extremely endangered/known as the "water panda")

The Yangtze giant soft-shell turtle is a first-class protected animal in China. Its number is extremely rare, and it can be called the most endangered species among turtles and tortoises. At present, only 3 Yangtze giant soft-shell turtles are known in the world. They mainly live at the bottom of rivers, lakes and marshes, and feed on aquatic animals. The dorsal disc of the Yangtze giant soft-shell turtle is about 36-57 cm long, and its weight can exceed 100 kg. It is the largest freshwater soft-shell turtle in the world.

The dorsal disc of the Yangtze giant softshell turtle is almost equal in width and length, nearly round, with a flat body and a slightly raised back. The epidermis on the back is smooth and shiny, and the back of the head, neck and limbs is dark green with irregular yellow spots. These dense yellow spots are the distinctive features of the Yangtze giant softshell turtle.

3. Pearl softshell turtle (turtle native to the United States)

Pearl softshell turtle, usually refers to Florida softshell turtle (scientific name: Apalone ferox), belongs to the family Testudinidae and the genus Apalone. This turtle is native to the United States, but has been introduced in Guangdong, Guangxi and other places in my country. They live in freshwater environments such as lakes and rivers. Florida softshell turtle is a common large turtle, with female individuals weighing more than 12 kilograms and male individuals weighing more than 5 kilograms.

The pearl turtle is oval in shape, with a smooth surface, a long nose tube and a wide skirt. Its carapace is dark green and covered with diffuse black spots. There are symmetrical dot-shaped warts on the front edge and dot-shaped warts on the rear edge. The plastron is white and there are well-developed webbed feet between the toes. Male turtles are small, flat and have a thick tail; female turtles are larger, thicker and have a short tail.

4. Mountain turtle (a precious and rare turtle in the southern mountainous area)

Mountain turtle (scientific name: Palea steindachneri) belongs to the family Testudinidae and the genus Palae, and is an animal similar in appearance to the common "soft-shelled turtle" - the Chinese soft-shelled turtle. It is slightly larger and thicker, and round in shape. The mountain softshell turtle is native to China and Vietnam, and has also been introduced to Mauritius and the Hawaiian Islands of the United States. They mainly live in rivers, streams, and ponds in mountainous areas, and especially like to live in clear and flowing mountain streams.

The mountain softshell turtle has a round body shape, a conical head, and is usually black or dark green in color. Its snout is protruding, forming a tubular snout, and its skin is soft and rough. It has a long neck, with fleshy drum-like protrusions on both sides of the base and the front edge of the carapace, and a row of obvious convex grains on the front edge of the dorsal disc. The limbs are flat, with well-developed webbed feet between the toes. The male turtle has a narrow and long tail, while the female turtle has a wide and short tail. The mountain softshell turtle is listed as a national second-class protected animal in China. It is illegal to catch or sell wild mountain softshell turtles without permission.

5. Asian softshell turtle (one of the most common softshell turtles)

The Asian softshell turtle (scientific name: Amyda cartilaginea) is one of the most common softshell turtles, also known as the Indochina giant softshell turtle. It has a snout similar to a pig's nose and can turn its head and neck to its back. Although its appearance is somewhat aggressive, it is not actually very aggressive. The carapace of the Asian softshell turtle is round or oval, and the maximum carapace length can reach 70 cm. The surface of its carapace is usually gray-green or olive, occasionally with black spots or radial stripes with yellow edges, which will gradually disappear as it grows. The plastron of the male is white, while that of the female is gray.

This type of softshell turtle lives in freshwater environments such as lakes, rivers, and ponds, and is an omnivorous animal. They like to eat fish, insects, crabs, carrion, fruits, and amphibians. Asian soft-shell turtles are nocturnal, usually hiding during the day and active at night to prey on fish, frogs, shrimps and aquatic insects.

6. Indian soft-shell turtle

Indian soft-shell turtle, also known as edge plate turtle or edge plate turtle, has a small head and a very short soft snout, which is less than half the diameter of the eye. It is mainly distributed in South Asia and is an oviparous amphibian reptile. The carapace of Indian soft-shell turtle is oblong, covered with leathery skin, with smooth front and back edges without warts, and very short skirt.

Its neck shield can move and is tightly closed with the front edge of the plastron; the plastron is flat and the front edge is semicircular. There is a pair of fan-shaped fleshy leaves on the inner side of the hind limb fossa. Once the hind limbs are retracted into the shell, the plastron and carapace can be tightly closed. There are three claws on the inside of the limbs, and there are abundant webs between the toes. The tail is short and olive in color, while the plastron is milky white or light yellow.

7. Malay softshell turtle

The Malay softshell turtle is one of the top ten softshell turtles in the world. The carapace is covered with skin and is dark olive or brown with a distinct dark black central stripe and 2 to 3 pairs of black eye spots. Although this pattern is very conspicuous when it is a juvenile, it gradually fades as it grows. The plastron is light yellow or gray in color, and the juvenile often has a large reddish spot behind the eyes, which disappears in the adult.

As it grows, a hinge structure forms on the carapace of the adult, which helps them hide under large pebbles along the stream bank. The Malay softshell turtle is a species of turtle that lives in the plateau, mainly distributed in clear, rocky mountain streams. It should be noted that the Malay softshell turtle has a very strong bite force, so you must be especially careful when handling it.

8. Burmese peacock softshell turtle

The Burmese peacock softshell turtle, scientifically known as the Nissler softshell turtle, is also known as the beautiful softshell turtle. Its carapace base color is light green, dotted with obvious black round spots, which resemble the markings on the peacock's tail feathers, hence the name "peacock softshell turtle". This turtle has a round carapace, can reach 65 cm in length, and its color ranges from olive gray to olive dark brown. It is mainly distributed in Southeast Asia and India.

The Burmese peacock turtle has three significant characteristics: first, there are four round black spots on the carapace; second, there are four callosities on the abdominal shield; and finally, the tail is short and the rear edge of the abdominal plate is blunt and round. As an alien species, the Burmese peacock turtle is widely used for breeding and consumption in some areas.

9. Horned turtle

Horned turtle, also known as spiny turtle, multi-wart turtle or American horned turtle, belongs to the family Testudinidae and the genus Trionyx. Its main distribution area is in North America, from southern Canada to northern Mexico. In recent years, my country has also begun to introduce and conduct trial breeding. The horned turtle is large in size, with an adult body length of up to 45 cm and a weight of about 3 to 5 kg. It is one of the medium and large turtles.

The horned turtle is flat and oval in shape, with a wide and thin skirt. It has a medium-sized head, a long snout, an olive head, light yellow stripes on both sides, and black lines on the edges of the stripes. It has small eyes and a thick and long neck. The carapace is olive green with black eye-spot-like markings on the surface, a rough texture, and is covered with small warts, with thorn-like protrusions on the front edge. The abdomen is pale white, grayish white or light yellow.

The horned turtle is timid and has a limited range of activities. It mainly lives in waters such as rivers and lakes. They feed on crustaceans, mollusks, small fish, insects, etc.

10. African three-clawed softshell turtle

The African three-clawed softshell turtle, also known as the African softshell turtle, is the only species in the subfamily of softshell turtles that is distributed in Africa. It is widely distributed throughout Africa outside the Sahara Desert, as well as in West Asia and Turkey, and mainly inhabits freshwater lakes and streams with gentle water flow.

The African three-clawed soft-shell turtle is huge, and the carapace length of an adult can exceed 1 meter, making it one of the largest soft-shell turtles in the world. Its limbs, head and carapace often have small yellow spots, especially in the larval stage, these spots are very obvious. As it ages, the spots on the carapace will gradually become blurred or even disappear completely.

The ranking of the world's top ten soft-shell turtles is based on the characteristics, distribution areas, habits, rarity, and popularity of different soft-shell turtles around the world, and is ranked and recommended in combination with the data of relevant online lists. The ranking is for reference only. If you have any questions, please comment at the end of the article.

Other turtles

Golden turtle

Indian small-headed turtle

Yellow River turtle

Texas spiny turtle

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