Reptilia - Testudines - Pelomedusidae
Etymology: The specific epithet refers to the Awash River, a major Ethiopian waterway renowned for its association with important fossil deposits, which have yielded some of the most significant known early hominin remains.
Full reference: B. Adrian, C. J. Campisano, K. E. Reed and D. F. Su. 2025. A new species of the mud terrapin Pelusios offers insights into early hominin habitats at the Pliocene Hadar Formation of Ethiopia. Scientific Reports 15(1):1-18
Belongs to Pelusios according to B. Adrian et al. 2025
Sister taxa: Pelusios adansonii, Pelusios bechuanicus, Pelusios broadleyi, Pelusios carinatus, Pelusios castaneus, Pelusios castanoides, Pelusios chapini, Pelusios cupulatta, Pelusios gabonensis, Pelusios marani, Pelusios nanus, Pelusios niger, Pelusios rhodesianus, Pelusios rusingae, Pelusios sinuatus, Pelusios subniger, Pelusios upembae, Pelusios williamsi
Type specimen: A.L. 207 − 15, a partial skull. Its type locality is Hadar - AL.207, which is in a Piacenzian lacustrine - small claystone in the Hadar Formation of Ethiopia.
Ecology: amphibious carnivore
Distribution:
• Pliocene of Ethiopia (3 collections)
Total: 3 collections each including a single occurrence
Specimen images are retrieved through the ePANDDA API.
Click image to enlarge. Click to access iDigBio record.