mata mata, matamata (Chelus fimbriata) Description Chelus fimbriatus
Date 1885
Source Transactions of the Zoological Society of London v. 11 https://archive.org/details/transactionsofzo11zool
Author R. Mintern
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Chelus_fimbriatus.jpg
The mata mata, mata-mata, or matamata (Chelus fimbriata) is a freshwater turtle found in South America, primarily in the Amazon and Orinoco basins. It is the only extant species in the genus Chelus. The mata mata was described for the first time by French naturalist Pierre Barrère in 1741 as a "large land turtle with spiky and ridged scales" (translation).[8] It was first classified as Testudo fimbriata by German naturalist Johann Gottlob Schneider in 1783. It was renamed 14 different times in two centuries, finally being renamed Chelus fimbriata in 1992. Order: Testudines, Suborder: Pleurodira, Family: Chelidae, Subfamily: Chelinae, Genus: Chelus, Species: Chelus fimbriata (Schneider, 1783).
Synonyms:
Testudo terrestris Fermin, 1765 Nomen rejectum
Testudo fimbriata Schneider, 1783
Testudo fimbria Gmelin, 1789 nomen novum
Testudo matamata Bruguière, 1792 nomen novum
Testudo bispinosa Daudin, 1801 nomen novum
Emydes matamata Brongniart, 1805
Chelus fimbriata (Schneider, 1783) recombination
Testudo rapara Gray, 1831 nomen novum
Testudo raparara Gray, 1844 nomen novum
Testudo raxarara Gray, 1856 nomen novum
Chelys boulengerii Baur, 1890 nomen novum
