Species Fact Profile: Common Snake-Necked Turtle

Common (Eastern, Australian) Snake-Necked Turtle

Chelodina longicollis (Shaw, 1794)

Range: Southeastern Australia
Habitat: Wetlands, Slow-Moving Streams and Rivers
Diet: Aquatic Insects and other Invertebrates, Tadpoles, Frogs, Small Fish
Social Grouping: Solitary
Reproduction: Breed from September through October, with nesting from October through December.  8-24 eggs laid in nests close to the water; females may lay up to three clutches per year.  Incubation lasts 120-150 days.  Males reach maturity at 7-8 years, females at 10-12 years
Lifespan: 30-35 Years
Conservation Status: IUCN Least Concern

• Shell length 18-28 centimeters, with females growing larger than males, weigh 440-820 grams.  The neck may grow to be up to two-thirds the length of the shell - so long that it cannot be pulled into the shell, and must be wrapped around the side.  Feet are webbed and clawed
• Carapace (top shell) is black or dark brown in color; the plastron (bottom shell) is yellow or cream in color with dark edges.  Exposed skin is grayish-black in color (also lighter on the underside), covered with small wart-like tubercles
• Males have longer, thinner tails than females
• Primary sedentary, but become more active, inclined to travel during breeding season.  Animals living in permanent bodies of water are active year round.  Those that live in seasonal water bodies may aestivate, sheltering under rocks or logs until the rains come
• Ambush predator, seizes prey with quick lunge with long neck, or opens mouth suddenly creating a vacuum to suck in small prey items
• If threatened, they will emit a foul odor from the musk glands, earning this species the nickname of "stinker."  Predators include water rats, ravens, birds of prey, dingoes, and monitor lizards, as well as introduced red foxes.
• One of over a dozen species of snake-necked turtles.  Hybridize readily with other snake-necked turtles (such as C. canni, Cann's snake-necked turtle) where they overlap