Mexico's Guadalajara Zoo has achieved a small wonder: it successfully hatched a Vallarta mud turtle.

The Vallarta mud turtle, recently discovered, is the smallest freshwater turtle species in the world, with adults reaching a maximum shell length of just 10.2 centimeters.

Very little information exists about this species, underscoring how rare and understudied it remains.

(Cover: A Vallarta mud turtle at the Guadalajara Zoo in Jalisco state, Mexico, August 25, 2025. /VCG)