Chinese soft-shelled turtles pass waste
through their mouths, scientists in Singapore have found.
Biologists were puzzled by the turtle's
behaviour because, despite using its lungs to breathe air, it often submerges
its head in water.
By testing the water, they found that the
reptile was excreting urea through its mouth instead of its kidneys.
The discovery adds to previous research,
which suggested the turtles have highly specialised mouth tissues.
Professor Ip Yeung Kwon and colleagues
from the National University of Singapore published their study in the Journal
of Experimental Biology.
The species, Pelodiscus sinensis, is
found in swampy, brackish water and is native to much of East Asia.
Their unusual mouths were first discussed
over a century ago when researchers suggested that the velvety tissues inside
function in a similar way to gills in fish.
Continued: http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/19883278
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