Mata mata turtles

In Indian, the name mata mata turtle means "I kill". It also means "fringed turtle" in Latin. But, today we know it just as the mata mata turtle. The mata mata turtle may grow to be about seventeen and a half inches long. The females can weigh up to 27 pounds. Their noses have a tube extension that lets the animal breathe while remaining totally submerged. The mata mata turtle is often mistaken for rocks and sunken logs. Their brown, black, golden yellow, and orange shells give them this appearance. The adult turtles are usually brown or black. The new born turtles are usually golden yellow or orange. They are also mistaken for algae. Their unique skin texture gives them this look. Because the mata mata turtle looks almost identical to the alligator turtle, even some experienced scientists have gotten them mixed up. The geographic location of the mata mata turtle is mostly throughout northern South America, in such places as Brazil, Guianas, and Venezuela. This turtle lives in muddy and shallow ponds, lakes, and very slow-moving rivers. The mata mata turtle is not a very good swimmer, but they walk along the bottom of the water, sitting very still in the water. When they are in the water, they are very camouflaged by their color and shape.

Mata mata turtles eat a variety of fish and aquatic invertebrates. They can not chew their food. They use their appearance to get food. They capture their food by opening their mouths. When they do that, their throats expand which causes a big rush of water . Then their prey gets sucked into their mouths. Next the turtles' mouths drain the water out, and they swallow the prey whole. The mata mata turtle has rippling flaps on both sides of its neck that are thought to contain sensitive nerve endings.With these the turtle can detect prey even in murky waters.

The mata mata nesting takes place during October and December. They lay 12-28 eggs in river beaches or on high land near the banks of little creeks. The eggs are 3.5 centimeters each. The eggs incubate in 2-4 months at 28 degrees celcius. The hatchlings are about 3 inches long. There is no maternal behavior between turtles. The mata mata turtle can live up to 10 1/2 years in the wild. It does well in captivity, too. In the Brandywine Zoo there is one male mata mata turtle. These turtles are hard to find in the wild because of their habitat loss.