Cyclanorbinae, also known commonly as the flapshell turtles, is a subfamily of softshell turtles in the family Trionychidae. The subfamily is native to Africa and Asia.
Taxonomy Morphological evidence supports Cyclanorbinae being the sister group to the Plastomeninae, an extinct subfamily of softshell turtles that inhabited North America from the Cretaceous to the Eocene.
Genera The subfamily Cyclanorbinae contains the following three extant genera.Turtle Taxonomy Working Group (Rhodin, Anders G.J.; Parham, James F.; van Dijk, Peter Paul; Iverson, John B.) (2009)."Turtles of the World: Annotated Checklist of Taxonomy and Synonymy, 2009 Update". Chelonian Research Monographs (5): 000.39-000.84. (Cyclanorbinae, pp. 000.55-000.56).
Cyclanorbis Cycloderma Lissemys
One extinct prehistoric genus is also known from fossil remains: Nemegtemys , from the Cretaceous of Mongolia.
Geographic range Species in the genera Cyclanorbis and Cycloderma are found in Africa; species in the genus Lissemys are found in Asia."Cyclanorbinae". The Reptile Database. www.reptile-database.org.
References
Further reading Lydekker R (1889). Catalogue of the Fossil Reptilia and Amphibia in the British Museum (Natural History). Part III. Containing the Order Chelonia. London: Trustees of the British Museum (Natural History). (Taylor and Francis, printers). xviii + 239 pp. (Cyclanorbinae, new subfamily, p. x).