Podocnemis expansa
Silhouette: Haplochromis · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~60%
The Arrau turtle (Podocnemis expansa), also known as the South American river turtle, giant South American turtle, giant Amazon River turtle, Arrau sideneck turtle, Amazon River turtle or simply the Arrau, is the largest of the side-neck turtles (Pleurodira) and the largest freshwater turtle in Latin America. The species primarily feeds on plant material and typically nests in large groups on beaches. Due to hunting of adults, collecting of their eggs, pollution, habitat loss, and dams, the Arrau turtle is seriously threatened.
Arrau turtles are found in the Amazon, Orinoco and Essequibo basins in Brazil, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Venezuela and Guyana. On occasion, typically after floods, individuals turn up in Trinidad. They are found in deep rivers, ponds, freshwater lagoons and flooded forest in white-, black- and clear-water.
Arrau turtles can reach up to 90 kg (200 lb) in weight and the carapace length is up to 1.07 m (3.5 ft). Most individuals are considerably smaller with the average adult female having a carapace length of 64–71 cm (2.1–2.3 ft) and the average adult male 40–50 cm (1.3–1.6 ft). In addition to an overall smaller... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Yasuní National Park | 🇪🇨 Ecuador |
More parks will be added in future updates.
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report an Arrau sighting in Yasuní National Park on a given day, based on 14 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 37th most-seen of the 49 reptiles we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 30%, and over a week to about 60%, if each day is a fresh chance.
February and November
In those months about 20% of wildlife watchers report an Arrau in Yasuní National Park on a given day, against under 5% in April, June, October and December, the lowest months.
Between 8 and 11 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Arrau sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Only Yasuní National Park, in our data
Yasuní National Park is the only park on Wallace's Line with enough records to rate Arrau sightings: about 10% of wildlife watchers there report one on a given day.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Arrau is recorded against all the reptiles logged in Yasuní National Park (14 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.
