Phrynops geoffroanus
Silhouette: Andy Wilson · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~50%
Phrynops geoffroanus, also commonly known as Geoffroy's side-necked turtle and Geoffroy's toadhead turtle, is a species of large side-necked turtle in the family Chelidae. The species is endemic to South America. The specific name, geoffroanus, is in honor of French naturalist Étienne Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire.
P. geoffroanus is found in southwestern Venezuela, southeastern Colombia, eastern Ecuador, and eastern Peru, southward and eastward through southwestern Brazil and northern Bolivia to Paraguay and northeastern Argentina, then northward through eastern Brazil. It also occurs in eastern Venezuela, and in adjacent Guyana.
The preferred natural habitat of P. geoffroanus is freshwater rivers. Phrynops geoffroanus. The Reptile Database. Boulenger GA (1899). Catalogue of the Chelonians, Rhynchocephalians, and Crocodiles in the British Museum (Natural History). New Edition. London: Trustees of the British Museum (Natural History). (Taylor and Francis, printers). x + 311 pp. + Plates I-III. (Hydraspis geoffroyana, pp. 223–224). Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Iguazú National Park | 🇦🇷 Argentina | |
| 2 | Iguaçu National Park | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 3 | Tambopata National Reserve | 🇵🇪 Peru | |
| 4 | Tijuca National Park | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 5 | Manu National Park | 🇵🇪 Peru |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Recife | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 2 | Goiânia | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 3 | João Pessoa | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 4 | Campo Grande | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 5 | Belo Horizonte | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 6 | Maceió | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 7 | Brasilia | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 8 | Fortaleza | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 9 | Curitiba | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 10 | Campinas | 🇧🇷 Brazil |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Paris Zoological Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 2 | Zoological Garden of Belo Horizonte | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 3 | Curitiba Zoo | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 4 | São Paulo Zoo | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 5 | Saint Louis Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 6 | Berlin Zoological Garden | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 7 | Biocentro Güembé | 🇧🇴 Bolivia | |
| 8 | Bioparque Municipal Vesty Pakos | 🇧🇴 Bolivia | |
| 9 | Rio de Janeiro Zoological Garden | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 10 | Zoo Americana / Parque Ecológico Municipal | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 11 | Como Park Zoo and Conservatory | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 12 | Como Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 13 | El Nispero Zoo | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 14 | Zoológico de Canindé | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 15 | Blue Planet Aquarium | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 16 | Aquarium Berlin | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 17 | Aquarium River of Zaragoza | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 18 | National Aquarium | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 19 | The Living Rainforest | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 20 | Belo Horizonte Aquarium | 🇧🇷 Brazil |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Geoffroy’s Side-necked Turtle sighting in Tambopata National Reserve on a given day, based on 5 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 44th most-seen of the 47 reptiles we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 50%, if each day is a fresh chance.
April and July
In those months about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Geoffroy’s Side-necked Turtle in Tambopata National Reserve on a given day, against under 5% in May–June and September–March, the lowest months. Those are among Tambopata National Reserve's driest months, with about 120 mm of rain a month against 420 mm in February.
Between 9 am and noon
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Geoffroy’s Side-necked Turtle sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
3rd of 5
Of the 5 parks where we can rate Geoffroy’s Side-necked Turtle sightings, Tambopata National Reserve ranks 3rd at about 10%. The best odds are in Iguazú National Park (Argentina, about 20%) and Iguaçu National Park (Brazil, about 20%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Geoffroy’s Side-necked Turtle is recorded against all the reptiles logged in Tambopata National Reserve (5 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
