Pelusios nigricans rhodesianus Hewitt, 1927 The variable mud turtle (Pelusios rhodesianus), also known as Rhodesian mud turtle, Mashona hinged terrapin or variable hinged terrapin, is a species of turtle in the family Pelomedusidae.

[1][2] The species was officially described by John Hewitt in 1927 and had to be broken into subspecies due to color variations on the heads of the turtles acrost the regions.

[3] This species is found in the Republic of the Congo, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Tanzania, Angola, Zambia, Malawi, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Mozambique, and South Africa.

[3] The variable mud turtle (Pelusios rhodesianus) is currently listed as of least concern by conservationists, but a reduction in population has been noticed between the variable mud turtle and species in the same family.

As it would turn out, destruction of water sources (such as damming) has caused an impact on this family of turtles.