side-necked turtle
side-necked turtle,
name for the long-necked turtleturtle,a reptile of the order Chelonia, with strong, beaked, toothless jaws and, usually, an armorlike shell. The shell normally consists of bony plates overlaid with horny shields.
..... Click the link for more information. of the families Chelidae and Pelomedusidae, found only in the Southern Hemisphere. The neck in these two families is of a different structure from that of other turtles and is folded sideways under the shell for concealment instead of being pulled straight back. Members of the family Chelidae, sometimes called snake-necked turtles, are river turtles of South America and the Australia–New Guinea region. Several species have slender, elongated snouts. Among these is the matamata (Chelys fimbriata) of Brazil and N South America. The matamata is a weak-jawed turtle that lies in wait for its prey, chiefly fish, and sucks it up with the snout. Its shell has high bumps and is covered with moss and water plants, so that when motionless the turtle looks like a rock. The family Pelomedusidae includes two African genera, Pelomedusa and Pelusios. Members of the latter genus resemble the North American box turtles, with a hinged shell. A third genus, Podocnemis, is found in rivers of South America and Madagascar. Side-necked turtles are classified in the phylum ChordataChordata
, phylum of animals having a notochord, or dorsal stiffening rod, as the chief internal skeletal support at some stage of their development. Most chordates are vertebrates (animals with backbones), but the phylum also includes some small marine invertebrate animals.
..... Click the link for more information. , subphylum Vertebrata, class Reptilia, order Chelonia.