Identifying Turtles

Anyone who has been to a park in Bangkok has seen the turtles. Turtles are an essential part of Thailand’s aquatic ecosystems and the country is full of beautiful and interesting species. Unfortunately, many turtles are endangered or extinct due to habitat destruction and harvesting for food and traditional medicine. The turtles you see in the city were released there from pet stores or markets, and finding a truly wild turtle in Bangkok is very difficult. This is a quick guide to identify those turtle species that can be seen:

If the turtle…

…has a red mark on the side of its head

Red-eared Slider – medium-sized body, yellow lines and a big red spot on its head that can sometimes fade with age

…has yellow or white stripes on the side of its head and no red mark

Malayan Snail-eating Turtle – small body and shell with 3 keels, white-to-yellow stripes that wrap around eye

Southeast Asian Box Turtle – small but with higher dome on shell and only 1 keel, yellow stripes that stay straight

…is black with pale spots on its head or no markings at all

Black Marsh Turtle – small body, sometimes has pale spot behind eye, “smiling” face

…has a large, domed shell and a yellowish or orangish head

Yellow-headed Temple Turtle – yellowish marks on head, adults lack keel on shell

Giant Asian Pond Turtle – orangish marks on head, adults have keel on shell

…has a flat rubbery shell and a long snout

Chinese Softshell Turtle – no more than 37cm long, especially long neck, single small bump on front edge of shell

Southeast Asian Softshell Turtle – up to 83cm long, long neck, row of bumps across front edge of shell