1899.] BEPTILES OF THE MALAY PENINSULA AND SL4.M. 619 



Superfamily Teionxohoidba. 

 Family TBioNTCHiDiE. 



The Soft Turtles are known to the Siamese as " Ta-parp-naam " 

 and " ki'ow." 



Some of the Indian inhabitants of Penang call them " Cawchur." 

 (In Benares, N.W.P., they were called " Cawchoo.") 



In the Taiping Museum there are several specimens of more 

 than one species from the rivers and marshes of Perak. A large 

 Trionyx was caught recently in a ditch by the side of one of the 

 principal roads in Singapore, right in the town ; they are also 

 from time to time trapped in the ornamental water in the Botanical 

 Gardens there. Mr. Kidley, Director of the Grardens, tells me 

 they are unwelcome visitors ; not only do they steal the food put 

 out for the water-fowl, but they have killed two flamingoes which 

 had been imported from Egypt. In the lake (Singapore) I have 

 myself watched in the middle of the day two large Trionyx 

 swimming and creeping slowly about in the swallow order, raising 

 their heads to the surface at frequent intervals ; but as a rule 

 these turtles are very seldom seen, even in waters where there 

 can be no doubt they abound. 



19. Teionxx subplanus Geoffr. (Plate XXXVI.) 



Trionyx subplanus, Glinth. Rept. Brit. lud. p. 49. 



Trionyx guntlieri, Giinth. Rept. Brit. Ind. p. 49, pi. iv. fig. 4. 



Trionyx subplanus, Blgr. Cat. Chel. etc. p. 246 (skull fig, 

 p. 247). 



Trionyx subplanus is recorded from Penang and Singapore 

 (P. Z. S. 1896, p. 860). In November 1896 I obtained one spe- 

 cimen in Penang ; like other turtles of this genus, it tried fiercely 

 to bite when handled. 



Colour (in life). The upper surfaces are pale yellowish olive, 

 mottled all over with dark olive-brown. These markings are 

 darker down the centre of the back, thus forming an irregular 

 black vertebral line. There are also three pairs of indistinct eye- 

 like markings, the anterior pair being situated almost at the front 

 edge of the dorsal leather-shield. The remaining four eyes form 

 a parallelogram on the centre of the back, but the posterior pair 

 are slightly nearer together than the median pair. There is a 

 narrow light yellow edge to the posterior half of the dorsal leather- 

 shield. The under surfaces are very pale lemon-yellow. About 

 the head there are shades of red on the yellow ground-colour. 

 There are five dark lines on the head ; the outermost spring from 

 the posterior border of the eyes, and are continued backwards and 

 downwards on to the sides of the neck ; in the centre of the fore- 

 head, level with the anterior border of the eyes, a dark line 

 commences and runs back and bifurcates, thus forming a Y-shaped 

 mark between and behind the eyes ; at the extremities of the 

 branches of the Y the two lines converge together again for a 



