Eastern Long-necked Turtle (male)

Description:

Get off the road! I drove right over the top of him, but he pulled his head in for safety. Good thinking, but I stopped the car and moved him to a safer location, just in case. This is an Eastern long-necked turtle, and is one of only a small handful of freshwater species found in SEQ. It's a member of the family Chelidae (side-necked turtles), and subfamily Chelodininae. Although there are colour variations within the species, my ID was based not only on the scutes (plates) of the carapace and plastron, but also the number of claws on the forelimbs. Chelodina longicollis has four claws, whereas other species (such as Chelodina expansa) has five. This fellow still has five toes though. NB: See last photo - the plastron is ever-so-slightly concave, and the V-shaped notch at the tail is synonymous with males of this species, whereas the female has a more-rounded notch.

Habitat:

Found on a country road. Rural landscape. This fellow was most likely travelling between dams. Lots of recent rain means he's on the move!

Notes:

When it feels threatened, this turtle will emit an offensive smelling fluid from its musk glands. This trait gives the turtle one of its other common names, "stinker". (Wikipedia) Yes, in the past I have been squirted on, and yes, it stinks! It's taken a while, but I have learned to keep that tail section pointed away from me.