The southern Vietnamese box turtle (Cuora picturata) is endemic to the southern mountainous regions of Vietnam, and possibly also occurring in extreme eastern Cambodia and southern Laos.

It is known only from Khanh Hoa and southern Phu Yen provinces, but may also occur in eastern Dak Lak and northern Ninh Thuan provinces.

This species was initially described as a subspecies of Cuora galbinifrons, but was shown to be genetically distinct.

While the head coloration of Cuora galbinifrons subspecies is highly variable even in different populations, this is not the case with C. picturata, whose head is always yellow with a fine, greyish reticulation.

They are commonly found in tropical, moist, and broadleaf evergreen forests.