Danubedelta

European pond terrapin                 

The European pond terrapin (also European pond turtle or European pond tortoise), is a turtle found in southern and central Europe, West Asia and North Africa. It lives in and around slow-flowing water and hibernates for up to seven months of the year at the bottom of the water. The pond turtle is a medium size turtle and varies quite a bit across its distribution, from 12 to 38 cm length. Its shell is brown with a hint of green, spotted yellow.

In the early post-glacial periode the pond turtle had a much wider distribution, being found as far north as southern Sweden.