Parkeri

Macrochelodina parkeri
(Rhodin & Mittermaier 1976)
Parker's Snake-Necked Turtle

Parkeri2

Macrochelodina parkeri is distributed in central Papua New Guinea. The range is very limited and restricted to the area around Lake Murray and Ballimo and the Fly and Aramia rivers. It might also occur in the neighbouring parts of Irian Jaya (Indonesia). Macrochelodina parkeri lives in grassy swamps in savannah areas. It inhabits the open edges of lakes and rivers where there is a dense grow of vegetation in shallow water. This areas are flooded during the rainy season and might dry out during the dry season. Macrochelodina parkeri has a unique head pattern. This can be described as a black and white marbeled pattern. The Carapace is brown or dark brown with some specimen having yellow reticulations. The plastron is cream to yellow. Macrochelodina parkeri is also known to deposit the eggs under water (underwater nesting)

Head pattern of adult female

New born M. parkeri hatchlings,
appx. 5 and 1 week old

Plastron view of 1 month old hatchling and 2 month
old hatchling. Note the color difference of the feet.

New born hatchling with yolk sack. The animal remains
in the incubator, floating in a Water-Vermiculite mixture
until the yolk sack is absorbed.

Juvenile about 12 month old

Typicall M. parkeri egg. Eggs measure 31 x 24 mm
Weight is appx. 12 g

Egss hatch after about 120 days at 29 degrees Celsius. The hatchlings exhibit the nice marbeled coloration on head and carapace. This coloration gets even more distinctive when the hatchlings grow. The plastron itself appears cremish-white. They start to eat after about 1-2 weeks, taking life red and white mosquito larves. After a while they will take other small diced food such as beef heart, turtle gelatine and earth worms.