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Cantor's giant softshell turtle or Asian giant softshell turtle (''Pelochelys cantorii'')〔 is a species of freshwater turtle. The turtle has a broad head and small eyes close to the tip of its snout. The carapace is smooth and olive-colored. Juveniles may have dark-spotted carapaces and heads, with yellow around the carapace.〔Ernst, Barbour, and Altenburg, ''Turtles of the World,'' 1998.〕 Despite reports that the Cantor's giant softshell turtles can grow up to 6 ft (about 2 m) in length and is the world's largest extant freshwater turtle, this maximum size and title is murky at best.〔"Rare Soft Shell Turtle, Nesting Ground Found in Cambodia," ''ScienceDaily,'' May 19, 2007.〕〔Mydans, "How to Survive in Cambodia: For a Turtle, Beneath Sand," ''New York Times,'' May 18, 2007.〕 Apparently the largest specimen carapace length, , known is considered suspect and the heaviest specimen known (weighing approximately was actually a misidentified Yangtze giant softshell turtle.〔De Rooij, N. (1915). ''The reptiles of the Indo-Australian archipelago''. A. Asher.〕〔Pritchard, P. C. H. (2005). ''Survival status and prospects for Rafetus swinhoei (Chelonia: Trionychidae)''. In 2005 Turtle Survival Alliance Annual Conference Proceedings (pp. 19-22).〕 A more realistic range of carapace length for this species is reportedly and it is one of about a half-dozen giant softshell turtles from three genera that reach exceptionally large sizes, i.e. in excess of in mass.〔Das, I. (2008). ''Pelochelys cantorii Gray 1864- Asian Giant Softshell Turtle''. Conservation Biology of Freshwater Turtles and Tortoises: Chelonian Research Monograph, No. 5.〕 ''P. cantorii'' an ambush predator and primarily carnivorous, feeding on crustaceans, mollusks and fish (although some aquatic plants may also be eaten).〔 The turtle spends 95% of its life buried and motionless, with only its eyes and mouth protruding from the sand. It surfaces only twice a day to take a breath, and lays 20–28 eggs (about 1.2 to 1.4 in The turtle is named after Theodore Edward Cantor.〔Beolens B, Watkins M, Grayson M. 2011. ''The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles''. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5. ("''Pelochelys cantori'' ()", p. 47).〕 ==Distribution== The turtle is found primarily in inland, slow-moving, freshwater rivers and streams. Some evidence indicates its range extends to coastal areas, as well.〔 The turtle is found in eastern and southern India, Bangladesh, Burma, Thailand, Malaysia, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, eastern and southern China, Singapore (extirpated), the Philippines (Luzon and Mindanao), and Indonesia (Kalimantan, Java, and Sumatra).〔 The turtle is regarded as endangered, and has disappeared from much of its range. Prior to 2007, it was last seen in Cambodia in 2003. A 2007 survey of one area of the Mekong River in Cambodia found the turtle in abundance along a 48-km (30-mi) stretch of the river.〔〔Munthit, "Rare Turtle's New Chance," ''Associated Press,'' May 16, 2007.〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Cantor's giant softshell turtle」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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