Population structure of Mauremys rivulata in western Turkey

Authors: ÖZGÜR GÜÇLÜ, OĞUZ TÜRKOZAN

Abstract: This study aims to provide information about the population structure of Mauremys rivulata at the ancient Claros site near Selçuk, in İzmir province. To achieve this goal, a total of 120 turtles (27 males, 70 females, 23 juveniles) were marked and 33 turtles were recaptured between May 2004 and April 2005. Of these recaptured turtles, 20 were female (60.6%), 9 were male (27.3%), and 4 were juveniles (12.1%). The average population size was estimated at 217. This corresponds to 434 individuals/ha. The mean body mass was 189 ± 147.5 g, which corresponds to a mean body mass of 82 kg/ha. The straight-line carapace length (SCL) of the specimens ranged from 55 mm to 181 mm (mean: 105.7 ± 25.8 mm), while the body mass varied between 27 g and 823 g. The sex ratio of marked individuals was 3.01:1.17:1 (female:male:juvenile).

Keywords: Geoemydidae, Mauremys rivulata, population structure

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