Namsaengi

Basic information

Designation

Natural Monument No.453

Category

동식물

Designated year

2005

Location

., 기타—

Coordinates

33.533579, 126.614025Kakao address conversion

This English description was machine-translated and may contain inaccuracies. Refer to the original Korean text for details.

The Reeves' turtle (Mauremys reevesii) inhabits unpolluted upper mountain streams and is primarily distributed in Korea, Japan, China, and Taiwan. The shell length is approximately 20-25cm with a dark brown elongated oval shape and smooth margins with yellowish-green borders at both ends and rare faint black markings. The central ridge line on the shell is low, covered with fine black scales, and the outer lateral margins have several irregular yellow vertical lines. All four legs are covered with broad scales. It lives in freshwater, is omnivorous feeding on fish, crustaceans, and aquatic plants, and digs holes in sand near water from June to August, laying 5-15 eggs. It appears frequently in Korean folk paintings and was once commonly seen in rivers throughout the country as a reptile. However, it is rapidly declining due to concrete straightening of rivers, aggregate mining, forest loss and disappearance, river pollution, and the spread of invasive species such as red-eared sliders. Folk medicine and traditional Korean medicine recommend its use for nutritional, strengthening, and restorative effects, leading to indiscriminate overharvesting that further exacerbates its decline.

Location