The family Chelydridae contains only three species in three monotypic genera
Appearance: Chelydrids are large freshwater turtles with massive heads. Their head is indeed so big that it cannot be retracted fully within the shell. The same is true for their limbs. The carapaces of chelydrids are flattened, triridged, and nearly rectangular in outline, and the plastrons are reduced. The three species have unusually long tails, almost equaling the length of their carapaces.
Size: Macrochelys (formerly Macroclemys) is one of the heaviest freshwater turtles worldwide (max. carapax length 80 cm, max. weight 80 kg).
Distribution: North America (Chelydrinae), China and Indochina (Platysterninae).
Relationships: Platysternon has been considered as a member of the Testudinidae or as a separate family, Platysternidae.
Habitat: Chelydra serpentina inhabits both freshwater and brackish water. Macrochelys lives in rivers, lakes and swamps
Food: Mostly carnivorous (preys include fish, molluscs, worms and other aquatic invertebrates); Chelydra serpentina is an omnivorous species.
Behaviour: Mostly nocturnal foragers. Macrochelys lures fish into its open mouth with a fleshy projection of the tongue that mimics a wormlike prey.
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