Cuora trifasciata, commonly known as the golden coin turtle, is a species of the genus Cuora (Emydidae, Testudinata).

Protection class

It is a Class II national protected animal.

Morphological characteristics

The turtle’s head is elongate, yellow and smooth without scales at the top. The snout is obtuse with the upper part slightly curved. The neck and throat is light orange, and a brown blotch can be noticed behind the eye on one side. The carapace is chestnut brown with three black longitudinal stripes (the middle one is longer, yet not found in young turtles), with smooth front and rear edges. The plastron is black, with yellow edges, which is connected with the thoracic shield and ventral shield by ligaments. The turtle shell can be completely closed. The skin on the armpits, limbs, and the tail of the turtle is reddish orange, with webbed fingers and toes.

Habits

Golden coin turtles inhabit mountainous streams and like to live in sunny, quiet environments with clean water. They often dig caves for sheltering in the bushes by the stream, and hide in the caves during the day and go out in the evenings or at nights. They exhibit social behavior. Since these turtles are highly sensitive to the altered temperatures, their activities are completely dependent on ambient environmental temperatures. They are most active when temperatures are between 23°C and 28°C. They become dormant below 10℃ and wake up from hibernation when it is above 12℃. Normally, golden coin turtles are active from April to October, and the hibernation lasts from November to early April of the following year. In the southern areas, they may enter a short period of dormancy from December to February of the following year.

Cuora trifasciata is omnivore. The food sources in the wild range from aquatic insects (water snails, fish, shrimps, tadpoles, etc.) to young rats, infant frogs, scarabs, snails, maggots, and sometimes pumpkins, bananas and tender leaves of plants.