Bista, D & Shah, K. 2010. Diversity and status of the turtles in Ghodaghodi Lake Area, Kailali District, Far West Nepal, Journal of Natural History Museum, Vol. 25, 366-373 366 Diversity and Status of the Turtles in Ghodaghodi Lake Area, Kailali district, Far West Nepal D. Bista K.B. Shah Abstract A field survey was conducted in Ghodaghodi Lake Area in September-October, 2009 for 28 days in order to document the diversity, ethnozoology and conservation issues of the turtles in the area. Direct observation, interview, educational local technique and literature review methods were used to gather information. A total of 11 species of turtles including1 Critically Endangered, 2 Endangered and 1 Vulnerable species have been recorded from the area. The Shannon Weiner diversity index (0.402) indicates moderate diversity and evenness index (0.38) shows the inequitable distribution of turtle species. Of the seven categories of habitats identified, majority (59.26%) of the individuals were found in lake water. Turtles have very high ethnozoological values especially among the Tharu people of the area. The study also discusses potential threats to the turtles in the area especially due to anthropogenic activities. Key words: chelonian, conservation, Ethnozoology, threats, wetland Introduction Turtles and tortoises (now usually simply termed ‘turtles’) belonging to the reptilian order Testudines, and are distinguished by their hard bony shell (Das, 1995). Here also the common term ‘turtles’ is used for all Nepalese turtles and tortoises. One of the oldest members of reptiles, turtles are easily recognized from all other animals by their characteristic bony shell. Therefore, they are also known as nature’s tank. The shell has two parts, the carapace above and the plastron below, joined along the flanks between the fore and hind limbs, both carapace and plastron have a foundation of bone covered with horny plates or scutes (leathery and soft-shell turtle are exception). The bony shell is a most effective predator defense because the limb girdles are within armor, and in most extant turtles, the limbs, head and neck and be drawn within the shell. The shell has been described by Zangerl (1969) as a “remarkable piece of biological engineering”. Freshwater turtles perform a valuable service as scavengers in the tanks, rivers and stagnant water and thus keep the aquatic systems free from pollution (Rao 1986). The declination rate is a serious indication as some species have rapidly declined in the past decade, may face extinction in the wild (Sandra and Daniela 2000). The freshwater turtle population is declining due to over exploitation and habitat destruction (Rao 1986). The Nepalese turtle fauna are classified into three families i.e. hard-shelled Bataguridae and Testudinidae, and soft-shelled turtles Trionychidae. All of them are toothless, and have a beak with horny sheaths. They have a dull sense of hearing but very sharp eye- sight. Some produce sounds during the breeding season only. All turtles nest on land and they live longest among all vertebrates (Rai, 2003). The latest figure for turtle species is 250 in the world (www.reptiledatabase.org; Nov. 2009). At least 50% of the 200 species of fresh water turtles are highly threatened and more than 75% of the Asian species are threatened (MEA, 2005). So far 17 species of turtles have been recorded from Nepal (Shah & Tiwari, 2004).