India GO
Reptile · Chitra indica
Indian narrow-headed softshell turtle
चित्रा (chitra)
IUCN EN · EndangeredProtected under Indian law · I
A very large softshell turtle with a narrow head and a flat pancake of a shell, lying buried in river sand with only its eyes exposed.
How to recognise it
Realistically seen from a boat as a broad grey disc surfacing to breathe. Confusion with the commoner flapshell turtle is easy — this one is much bigger.
Protection
Schedule I of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972.
Where to see it
Varanasi
Softshell turtles were released into this stretch of the Ganga in large numbers in the 1980s as a river-cleaning measure. How much the scheme achieved is still argued about, and the turtles that remain are protected.
The Ganga by Rowing Boat: Assi to Ramnagar