Meet Philbert, one of the most unique Envirodome residents here at Adelaide Zoo!
With his trunk-like nose and peculiar clawed flippers, Philbert the Pig-nosed Turtle loves to spend his day frolicking underwater and crunching on tasty grapes from his beloved keepers.
“Philbert loves his food and attention very much,” laughs Keeper Jordan.
“He is pretty personable and will come up to the surface for a grape; he will let you know if he is hungry for sure.”
As you might expect, Pig-nosed Turtles really are one of a kind. Hailing from southern New Guinea and Australia’s tropical northern rivers, these endearing turtles are the only freshwater turtle with flippers. Philbert also has a unique layer of skin over his shell and can use his peculiar snout as a snorkel, poking his nose above the water to breathe.
“Pig-nosed Turtles are pretty much a fully aquatic freshwater turtle,” says Keeper Jordan. “They only really come up for laying eggs.”
“Philbert is definitely a crowd favourite at the Zoo, particularly because he looks so interesting and different to what people often think a turtle should be.”
Around 140 million years ago, Pig-nosed Turtles were a widespread family. Facing constant threats from poaching and the illegal wildlife trade, these intriguing turtles are the only remaining members of this family and are currently listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red list.
“Because Pig-nosed Turtles are quite unique and have such big personalities, they are taken for the pet trade quite often,” says Keeper Jordan.
To support Philbert and wild Pig-nosed Turtles in Australia, Adelaide Zoo partnered with the University of Adelaide’s Wildlife Crime Research Hub to host the inaugural Wildlife Crime in Our Backyard Showcase in November.
