Comprehensive Guide to Turtles
Translated by
ScribdTranslationsComprehensive Guide to Turtles
Translated by
ScribdTranslationsTurtle
We explain everything about turtles, their diet, habitat, and other characteristics. Additionally,
differences between sea turtles and terrestrial turtles.
What is a turtle?
Turtles or chelonians are a group of reptiles that inhabit aquatic and terrestrial environments. Their main
a characteristic is having a strong shell that protects their internal organs and encompasses
the entire torso of the animal. Designed like a sturdy box and made of bone and cartilage, this
the shell grows alongside the animal and is part of its own vertebral column, so that
can take refuge inside.
This order of reptiles is zoologically known as testudines. It is estimated that they emerged
250 million years ago, in the Triassic period of the Mesozoic era. That means they are the
the oldest reptiles that still inhabit the Earth, adapted to different habitats and living lives
particularly long-lived.
There are around 356 different species of turtles on all continents (except for the
In the Antarctic), equipped with very diverse sizes, proportions, diets, and habitats. Many of them
they are found in danger of extinction, partly due to human hunting, which devours them
eggs and uses their shells decoratively (in fact, before the invention of plastic, they
they were used to obtain tortoiseshell for eyeglass frames), and partially due to pollution
of their habitats.
Humans have felt attraction for turtles since ancient times. Although there are very few
domestic species, these animals often abound in the mythological imagination of very diverse
cultures, generally as a symbol of ancestral forces and knowledge.
In fact, in Hindu mythology, it was believed that the whole world was a disk supported by four
large elephants, which were standing on the shell of a turtle.
General characteristics of turtles
Turtles are characterized, in broad terms, by the following:
They are reptiles, that is, cold-blooded vertebrates with oviparous reproduction, whose bodies
consist of a large shell, a head, a small tail, and four limbs, which
legs in terrestrial turtles and fins in aquatic ones.
They lack teeth in the jaw; instead, they have a keratinous beak.
sharp and occasionally serrated.
They have a good vision, which they prioritize above their other senses, although
they also often use smell and hearing. They have a superior nervous system, like
all vertebrate animals, with a brain and a spinal cord.
Except for the aquatic turtles underwater, these are slow-moving animals and
not very agile. Their slow metabolisms provide them with a long life, reaching
some species the century of life.
Used to crawling or swimming, they are never usually found lying on their shells.
and especially the tortoises deterra present a huge difficulty for themselves
return.
Water turtles.
Aquatic turtles, whether fresh or saltwater, represent an important percentage of the
species of turtles in the world. They inhabit the oceans or small ponds and lakes.
They have adapted their bodies to submerged life, which is why they have webbed feet.
interdigital or directly fins, which allow them to swim comfortably, without being useless.
in case of having to return to Earth.
In addition, they have a smooth and hydrodynamic shell. Depending on the species, they can withstand the
breathing for a very long time, which allows them to feed without problems underwater.
Land turtles.
Tortoises are particularly slow and calm animals, with large shells.
and rough, which can vary greatly in terms of weight, length, and coloration.
It is common to find them in the open where they are exposed to the sun to warm their cold blood, and in general
they have a patient temperament. However, there are also particularly aggressive species and
territorial.
Feeding of turtles.
The diet of turtles largely depends on their habitat. Those suitable for the
terrestrial life are mostly herbivores, with an almost exclusive diet of leaves, stems,
roots and fruits, although other species are omnivorous and eat basically whatever they can, from
small mollusks, insects, and worms up to carrion.
Something similar happens with aquatic species, capable of eating coral, which supplies them
important nutrients like calcium, to algae, fish, jellyfish, octopuses, and small ones
crustaceans.
Turtle habitat
Throughout the centuries, turtles have adapted very well to almost all environments of the.
land surface, as well as marine and freshwater life. In Southeast Asia and in North
America has the greatest diversity of species. In both cases, the favorite environment seems to be
to be the lacustrine, whether in small ponds, or extensive rivers and lakes.
Generally, each species of turtle is endemic to its location, meaning it is not found anywhere else.
other side. In addition, there are species typical of forests, deserts, plains or on volcanic islands, such as
the Galapagos tortoises that inspired Charles Darwin, of enormous size and capable of living longer
of a hundred years.
Turtle reproduction
Like many other reptiles, turtles mate according to seasonal patterns. The
turtles do not care for their offspring, but deposit a large number of eggs and bet on the
survival of a low percentage of the offspring.
The fertilized females lay eggs of different shapes and textures, always in the soil.
Even sea turtles, after mating, migrate hundreds or thousands of kilometers to lay their eggs.
in the land, digging holes and then burying them with enormous effort. From there they come out then the
little turtles in a frantic race back to the water.
At sexual maturity, given their long lives, it takes time to arrive, and copulation is laborious.
due to the rigidity of the shells. Many species have a depression in the belly of the
male, so that it can mate with the female by climbing on top from behind.
The turtle's shell.
The shells of turtles are made of resilient biological materials, such as bone and
the cartilage, but its shape, strength, and coloration can vary greatly from one species to
another.
In general, the shell consists of three regions: a skin covering similar to leather,
covering a set of resistant keratin plates (the same material from which they are made
their beaks), similar to the scales of other reptiles, and resting on a series of
bone shields.
In addition, the shell consists of two differentiated parts:
The back. Which occupies the upper region or the back of the animal, composed of five rows of
plates, arranged in concentric regions of extreme hardness.
The plastron. It is the region of the belly and chest of the animal, that is to say, the one facing the ground, also
called 'pocket', and it is usually pale, smooth, and less resistant.
Bibliography