Turtles are the reptiles of the order, Testudines. There are presently 360 living and recently extinct species of turtles globally. In this post, we have ranked the Top 15+ Rarest Turtles in the world. These turtles are categorized under the “Critically Endangered” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
Therefore, we have listed the rarest turtles according to their conservation status. Before proceeding, let’s discuss the fundamental difference between turtles and tortoises.
Turtles spend most of their time in the water, whereas tortoises live most of their life on land. Here, we have considered only turtles, not tortoises, in this list. So, without any further ado, let’s begin.
Top 15+ Rarest Turtles in the World
16) Red-Crowned Roofed Turtle
| Scientific Name | Batagur kachuga |
| Size | up to 56 cm |
| Location | Nepal, northeastern India, Bangladesh, and Burma |
| Conservation Status | Critically Endangered |
Let’s begin the list of rarest turtles in the world with the Red-Crowned Roofed Turtle. It is one of the most beautiful turtles with 6 distinctive bright red stripes on top of the head. Currently, according to CITES Appendix, it is categorized under critically endangered turtle.
Due to being harvested for its shell and meat and the increase in sea pollution, its pollution gets exponentially declined. Right now, only 400 adult Red-Crowned Roofed Turtles are left in the world.
15) Painted Terrapin
| Scientific Name | Batagur borneoensis |
| Size | 50-70 cm |
| Location | World Wide Fund for Nature, Malaysia |
| Conservation Status | Critically Endangered |
Painted terrapin, also known as Saw-jawed Turtle, is critically endangered and one of the rarest species of turtles. It is only protected by the World Wide Fund for Nature in Malaysia.
During the winter and summer breeding seasons, males Painted terrapin turn their heads white with a red stripe on the top.
14) Yellow-Headed Box Turtle
| Scientific Name | Cuora aurocapitata |
| Size | 15-17 cm |
| Location | Central Chinese Anhui Province |
| Conservation Status | Critically Endangered |
Yellow-Headed Box Turtle, also known as Golden-headed box turtle, is also categorized under the critically endangered turtle species.
It is from the family Geoemydidae that can only be observed in Nanling County, Yi County, Guangde County, and Jing County. The species are diurnal, omnivorous, and have freshwater habitats.
13) Kemp’s Ridley Sea Turtle
| Scientific Name | Lepidochelys kempii |
| Size | 58-70 cm |
| Location | Gulf of Mexico |
| Conservation Status | Critically Endangered |
Kemp’s Ridley Sea Turtle, also known as Atlantic ridley sea turtle, is one of the rarest sea turtles in the world. It is from the species Lepidochelys kempii, mainly found in the Gulf of Mexico (adults most).
This turtle is the smallest sea turtle, ranging from 58 to 70 cm. These turtles change colors as they grow from dark purple during hatchlings into yellow-green adults.
12) Dahl’s toad-headed Turtle
| Scientific Name | Mesoclemmys dahli |
| Size | up to 22.9 cm |
| Location | Northern Colombia |
| Conservation Status | Critically Endangered |
Dahl’s toad-headed turtle is a critically endangered species of side-necked turtle. It is a freshwater turtle that can only be witnessed in Northern Colombia. It has an olive-to-brown carapace with a size of approximately 22.9 cm.
11) Yangtze softshell Turtle
| Scientific Name | Rafetus swinhoei |
| Size | more than 100 cm |
| Location | Eastern and Southern China |
| Conservation Status | Critically Endangered |
Yangtze softshell turtle is also known as Red River giant softshell turtle and it is from the family Trionychidae. These critically endangered turtles are one of the rarest species of turtles in the world.
Yangtze Softshell can only be discovered only in eastern & southern China and northern Vietnam. It is also one of the largest living freshwater turtles globally, with an overall size of more than 100 cm and up to 220 lb. It commonly has a deep head with a pig-like snout.
10) Philippine Forest Turtle
| Scientific Name | Siebenrockiella leytensis |
| Size | up to 30Â cm |
| Location | Taytay and San Vicente, Philippines |
| Conservation Status | Critically Endangered |
Philippine Forest Turtle, also known as Siebenrockiella leytensis, is categorized as a critically endangered freshwater turtle. These turtles have brown to black carapaces of length up to 30 cm and have plastrons of the same colors.
Philippine Forest Turtles can only be found in the areas of Taytay and San Vicente, Palawan.
9) Hawksbill Sea Turtle
| Scientific Name | Eretmochelys imbricata |
| Size | average of 100 cm |
| Location | Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic Oceans (worldwide distribution)
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| Conservation Status | Critically Endangered |
Another critically endangered sea turtle is Hawksbill Sea Turtle. It is from the family Cheloniidae that can be seen worldwide in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic Oceans.
It is scarce to glimpse these sea turtles. They typically grow on an average of 1 m and 80 kg.
8) Golden coin Turtle
| Scientific Name | Cuora trifasciata |
| Size | up to 25 cm |
| Location | Hainan |
| Conservation Status | Critically Endangered |
Golden coin turtle, also known as Chinese three-striped box turtle, is also one of the rarest turtles globally that are only discovered in Hainan, southern China.
It is from the family Geoemydidae which primarily feeds on small fish, frogs, and insects. They have a dark brown carapace with a yellow border plastron.
7) Roti Island Snake-Necked Turtle
| Scientific Name | Chelodina mccordi |
| Size | 18-24 cm |
| Location | Rote Island in Indonesia |
| Conservation Status | Critically Endangered |
Roti Island Snake-Necked Turtle, also known as McCord’s snake-neck turtle, is also classified as a critically endangered turtle species. These turtles are from the family Chelodina mccordi.
They can easily identify with its long neck and pale grey-brown carapace. It is endemic to Rote Island in Indonesia.
6) Cantor’s Giant Softshell Turtle
| Scientific Name | Pelochelys cantorii |
| Size | up to 180 cm |
| Location | Southeast Asia |
| Conservation Status | Critically Endangered |
Asian giant softshell turtle, another name Cantor’s Giant Softshell Turtle, is one of the rarest species of freshwater turtles.
It is from the family Trionychidae that are commonly found in Southeast Asia in these countries (India, Bangladesh, Burma, Thailand, Malaysia, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, China, the Philippines, and Indonesia).
Softshell turtles have a very soft shells that can grow up to 1.8 meters. It is also one of the largest freshwater turtles.
5) Flattened Musk Turtle
| Scientific Name | Sternotherus depressus |
| Size | 7.5–11.4 cm |
| Location | Bankhead National Forest, Alabama |
| Conservation Status | Critically Endangered |
Flattened Musk Turtle is only discovered in the southeastern region of the United States.
It is also one of the critically endangered turtle species that are presently protected by Bankhead National Forest, Alabama. Flattened Musk Turtles can easily be identified by their lower and flatter carapace.
4) Bog turtle
| Scientific Name | Glyptemys muhlenbergii |
| Size | up to 9.4 cm |
| Location | Eastern United States |
| Conservation Status | Critically Endangered |
Bog Turtles are the rarest species of semiaquatic turtles in the family Emydidae. They are classified as critically endangered species and can only be found in the eastern region of the United States.
Bog Turtle is one of the smallest turtles found in the US that weighs an average of 110 grams and can grow up to 10 centimeters.
3) Indochinese Box Turtle
| Scientific Name | Cuora galbinifrons |
| Size | 10-20 cm |
| Location | China (Hainan and Guangxi), northern and central Vietnam, Laos, and possibly northeastern Cambodia |
| Conservation Status | Critically Endangered |
Indochinese box turtles also known as Vietnamese box turtles or flowerback box turtles are one of the rarest turtles of the family Geoemydidae.
They are only found in the high-altitude of China, Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia. These turtles are currently declining. Also, they have different colored carapaces depending on the region.Â
2) McCord’s Box Turtle
| Scientific Name | Cuora mccordi |
| Size | 14-18 cm |
| Location | Guangxi province, China |
| Conservation Status | Critically Endangered |
McCord’s Box Turtles are categorized under the critically endangered turtles that are endemic to Guangxi province, China.
They can grow on an average of 14 to 18 cm. These species of box turtles are beneficial in making traditional Chinese medicines.
1) Hickatee
| Scientific Name | Dermatemys mawii |
| Size | up to 60 cm |
| Location | Central America |
| Conservation Status | Critically Endangered |
The rarest turtle in the world is Hickatee that are only living species in the family Dermatemydidae. It has a large body of length 60 cm and weighs 22 kg on average.
It can only be seen in the rivers in Central America from southern Mexico to the Guatemalan-Honduran border. Hickatee turtles have smooth carapaces with uniform brown color. They primarily feed on small fishes and insects.
Here we conclude our article on “Top 15+ Rarest or Most Endangered Turtles in the World.” We hope you like it. We will be back with another article. Till then, stay tuned with us and read the other posts below. Â
References-
Image Source- Wikipedia, Edge of Existence, The San Pedro Sun
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Monty is a founder of How It See. Being a life science student in a reputed university, he always wonders about an eclectic correlation between science and nature. After engaging in various college projects, Monty determined to share all his knowledge with you as a writer. In the meantime, he loves to research and study about the various types of colorful animals.