Indotestudo elongata (Blyth, 1854)

Nguyen, Tan Van, Brakels, Peter, Maury, Nathanael, Sudavanh, Somchit, Pawangkhanant, Parinya, Idiiatullina, Sabira, Lorphengsy, Sengvilay, Inkhavilay, Khamla, Suwannapoom, Chatmongkon & Poyarkov, Nikolay A., 2020, New herpetofaunal observations from Laos based on photo records, Amphibian & Reptile Conservation (e 248) 14 (2), pp. 218-249 : 243-244

Indotestudo elongata (Blyth, 1854)

Elongated Tortoise ( Fig. 12E)

Several individuals of I. elongata were observed by P. Brakels in August 2018 and March 2019 in captivity in villages in Pathoumphone District, Champasak Province. All tortoises were said to be captured in nearby forest areas, including the territory of Xe Pian NPA. Furthermore, one individual was observed by K. Inkhavilay in May 2018 in Phin District, Savannakhet Province; other records include reports from villagers in Xonnabouly District who recently collected this species from nearby open woodlands and dry dipterocarp forests (photo record only) .

Morphological characters of the individuals from Savannakhet and Champasak provinces agreed well with the descriptions of Hendrie et al. (2011) and Chan-ard et al. (2015). The photographed individuals ( Fig. 12E) agree with the diagnosis of I. elongata in the following characters: head elongate, with sharply truncated snout, large scutes located over tympanum; carapace high, domed, flattened dorsally with moderately serrated posterior marginal scutes; plastron elongated with a posterior notch. Carapace yellowish-brown, with black blotches on the vertebrals and pleurals; plastron and bridge yellowish, unmarked.

Distribution. In Laos, this species has been recorded from Vientiane, Khammouan, Saravan, and Attapu provinces (Stuart and Patt 2004; Teynié and David 2010). These are the first records from Savannakhet and Champasak provinces. Elsewhere, this species has been reported from India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal, China, Myanmar, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, and Malaysia ( Rhodin et al. 2017).