Rafetus Explained

Rafetus is a genus of highly endangered softshell turtles in the family Trionychidae. It is a genus of large turtles which are found in freshwater habitats in Eurasia.

Species

According to most taxonomists, the genus Rafetus contains the following two extant species.

• Rafetus euphraticus – Euphrates softshell turtle
• Rafetus swinhoei – Yangtze giant softshell turtle

A possible third species, Rafetus leloii (synonym R. vietnamensis), known commonly as the Hoan Kiem turtle, has been proposed as a species. It is considered a junior synonym of Rafetus swinhoei by most authorities,^[1] but some Vietnamese scientists insist the two forms are not identical. The last known individual at Hoan Kiem Lake was found dead on 19 January 2016.

An extinct species R. bohemicus from the Burdigalian age (Early Miocene) about 17.5 million years ago lived in what is today the Czech Republic.^[2]

Taxonomy

Cladogram

As drawn by Walter G. Joyce, Ariel Revan, Tyler R. Lyson, and Igor G. Danilov (2009)^[3]

Distribution

• Rafetus euphraticus: had been found at Tigris and Euphrates Rivers in Iraq, Syria, Turkey, and Khūzestān Province of Iran. The International Union for Conservation of Nature rates it as Endangered.^[4]
• Rafetus swinhoei: Only three known living individuals, one in Suzhou Zoo (China) and two in two lakes in northern Vietnam, Dong Mo lake and Xuan Khanh lake. IUCN rates it as critically endangered.^[5]

External links

• Gray JE (1864). "Revision of the Species of Trionychidae found in Asia and Africa, with Descriptions of some New Species". Proc. Zool. Soc. London 1864: 76–98. (Rafetus, new genus, p. 81).

Notes and References

1. Farkas B, Webb RG (2003). "Rafetus leloii Hà Dinh Dúc, 2000 — an invalid species of softshell turtle from Hoan Kiem Lake, Hanoi, Vietnam (Reptilia, Testudines, Trionychidae)". Zool. Abhandl. (Dresden) 53: 107-112.
2. Chroust . M. . Mazuch . M. . Ivanov . M. . Alba . D. M. . Luján . À. H. . 2023 . Redescription of the soft-shell turtle Rafetus bohemicus (Testudines, Trionychidae) from the Early Miocene of Czechia . PeerJ . 11 . e15658 . 10.7717/peerj.15658 . 37525660 . 10387236 . free.
3. Joyce, Walter G.. Revan, Ariel. Lyson, Tyler R.. Danilov, Igor G.. 2009. Two New Plastomenine Softshell Turtles from the Paleocene of Montana and Wyoming. Bulletin of the Peabody Museum of Natural History. 50. 2. 307–325. 10.3374/014.050.0202. 85505337.
4. Rafetus euphraticus . Ghaffari, H.. Taskavak, E.. Turkozan, O.. Mobaraki, A.. 2017.
5. Rafetus swinhoei . Asian Turtle Trade Working Group. 2000.