[Herpetology • 2016] Malayemys isan | เต่านาอีสาน | Isan Snail-eating Turtle • A New Snail-eating Turtle of the Genus Malayemys Lindholm, 1931 (Geoemydidae) from Thailand and Laos

We describe a snail-eating turtle, Malayemys isan sp. nov., from the Mekong River Basin in northeastern Thailand (Nong Bua Lamphu, Nong Khai and Udon Thani provinces) and the adjacent Vientiane area in Laos. The new species is readily distinguishable from M. subtrijuga by its two (vs. six to nine) nasal stripes, and from both M. subtrijuga and M. macrocephala by its thin, often discontinuous, infraorbital stripe that never reaches the loreal seam. This geographically-restricted new species is sold in several food markets throughout the species' distribution and is in urgent need of conservation measures.

Keywords: Aquatic ecosystems, biodiversity, herpetofauna, Mekong, snail-eating turtle

Etymology: “Isan”  is a Thai word designating the northeastern region of Thailand, where the type locality of the new species lies. It is here used as a noun in apposition, invariable.
We suggest the following common names: เต่านาอีสาน, Tao na Isan (Thai), Isan Snail-eating Turtle (English), Isan-Schneckenfresser (German), and Malayémyde d’Isan (French).

.Montri Sumontha, Timothy R. Brophy, Kirati Kunya, Suthep Wiboonatthapol and Olivier S. G. Pauwels. 2016.  A New Snail-eating Turtle of the Genus Malayemys Lindholm, 1931 (Geoemydidae) from Thailand and Laos.  TAPROBANICA. 8(1); 1–9.