A new species of turtles were recently discovered near the city of Puerto Vallarta in Mexico. Though saying that these turtles were discovered just now would be slightly wrong, natives of Puerto Vallarta have been telling scientists about these species of mud turtles that are native to the city for a long time, 20 years to be exact. At first scientists thought that they were just a juvenile species of the existing species in the city. It was only around May this year that scientists were able to properly identify the turtles. Now they are being called the world’s newest species. These turtles would be scientifically known as Kinosternon vogti and they will be the newest member of the genus Kinosternon which already has 12 other turtle species. They were named after the famous American herpetologist Richard Vogt.
In the last five years researchers extensively studied the new species and the results were finally published in June in the journal Chelonian Conservation and Biology. For the research scientist studied nine specimens, five of them were discovered dead and then taken to the National Autonomous University of Mexico, the other four (one female and three male) were alive. The new species can be identified by the bright yellow spot on the tip of its nose. Scientists are also saying that they are agiler than their counterparts- their steps being faster. The ponds and rivers of the city of Puerto Vallarta in Jalisco are their homes. Fabio German Cupul, Professor at the University of Guadalajara said, “This is an endemic species, unique to this site”.
The turtles have been nicknamed “small helmet of Vallarta” because it shell resembles a helmet. Cupul explains that they are wider than they are tall, which is unlike the other 12 species. The turtles are as small as 10 centimeters in length and can fit inside your palm. While the discovery of this new species is a great news, the species are already at a risk of extinction. One male and one female have found a breeding site in the state of Tabasco and two other males are currently in an enclosure on a crocodile farm in Puerto Vallarta.