Gaffney's Santana Turtle

Santanachelys gaffney

(Hirayama 1998)?

    On the eastern coast of what will one day be called Brazil, a narrow sea, what will one day be the Pacific ocean. The waters of this sea are warm and full of food, support many pterosaurs such as Tupuxuara leonardii, Tapejara imperator, and Tropeognathus robustus. However, it is not just pterosaurs the live in this ritch environment.  Turtles like Santanachelys gaffney, formerly of only fresh water, have adapted to this marine environment.

    Although, superficialy, S. gaffney seems no different from freshwater turtles, it differs signifigantly in biochemistry.  Since tetrapods (terestrial vertibrates) left the oceans many millions of years ago, our blood is now much less salty than modern oceans.  Thus, if a tetrapod drinks seawater, the salt in the water dries out the body from the inside and the animal dies of thirst, even though it is swimming in water.  To cope with its salty medium, S. gaffney has modified its lachrymal glands (glands near the eyes) in salt-excesion devises (Hirayama). S. gaffney is the first known turtle to accomplish this feat, and its descendents will swim the oceans of the world of another hundred-million years.
 
 

Thanks to Ray Stanford, of cource.
 

Other sites containing pertinent information:

• The April 16, 1998 issue of Nature, Oldest Known Sea Turtle page 705-707