Asian box turtle

Asian box turtles are turtles of the genus Cuora in the family Geoemydidae. About 12 species are recognized. The keeled box turtle (Pyxidea mouhotii syn. Cuora mouhotii) is often included in this genus, or separated in the monotypic genus Pyxidea. Genus Cuora is distributed from China to Indonesia and the Philippines, throughout mainland Southeast Asia, and into northern India and Bhutan. Cuora species are characterized by a low- (e.g. Cuora pani) to high- (e.g. Cuora picturata) domed shell, which usually has three keels on the carapace. They are reddish, yellowish, brown, grey, and/or black in color. Some species have bright yellow, black, orange, or white stripes down the length of their keels. Their body color is highly variable, but usually very intense. Most species show stripes of variable color down either side of their heads, which usually meet at the nose. The Asian Box Turtle is the most heavily trafficked turtle in the world. It is captured and sold as food to China, and to the United States as pets, where in South East Asia it is turning into an especially big problem. Which Nancy Karraker, a University of Rhode Island associate professor, has said “Trafficking in turtles is a major issue in Southeast Asia, and it’s important that we understand the key ecological roles that species like this box turtle play before it’s too late,” Different conservation organizations are taking action to prevent or slow down the extinction of these species. However, in the past most of the efforts are failed due to lack of biological research regarding  their history or genetic diversity of these species. Asian box turtles are terrestrial, semiaquatic, or mainly aquatic, most spending much of their time on the edge of shallow swamps, streams, or pond that are dense with vegetation. Most are omnivorous, but carnivores do occur. Listed alphabetically by binomial name: Cuora serrata, originally described as C. galbinifrons serrata by Iverson & Mccord and later considered a distinct species are hybrids of the keeled box turtle and taxa of the Indochinese box turtle complex as shown by the genetic studies of Parham et al. and Stuart & Parham (2004). A single specimen of C. serrata has been found in the wild, lending credence to the possibility that other specimens arose through natural hybridization or even from wild populations. No Chinese turtle farm is known to produce C. serrata-like specimens. The occurrence of wild hybrids is often regarded as 'evolution in progress', a terminology and point of view that is not always accepted. It has yet to be confirmed, whether all C. serrata from the wild have originated by direct hybridization of C. mouhotii and C. galbinifrons, or also by 'hybridisation' of C. serrata × C. serrata.