Tortoise
A tortoise is a reptile of the order Testudines which lives on land. Like their aquatic cousins, the sea turtles, tortoises are shielded from predators by a shell. Most are quite small, but island tortoises have several times evolved to a large size: those on the Galapagos are famous. Darwin made one of his rare mistakes when he did not note which island each of them came from. Later it became clear that they were slightly different on different islands.
| Tortoises | |
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| Aldabra giant tortoise (Geochelone gigantea) from Aldabra atoll in the Seychelles. | |
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| Superfamily: | Testudinoidea |
| Family: | Testudinidae |
Further reading
- Chambers, Paul. A sheltered life: the unexpected history of the giant tortoise. John Murray (Publishers), London. 2004. ISBN 0-7195-6528-6.
- Gerlach, Justin. Giant tortoises of the Indian Ocean. Chimiara publishers, Frankfurt. 2004
Gallery
A baby Testudo marginata emerges from its shell
Aldabra Giant Tortoise Geochelone gigantea
Galápagos tortoise on Santa Cruz Island, Galápagos Islands
Gigantic galapagos turtle, Chelonoidis nigra on the island of Santa Cruz
Related pages
Other websites
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Testudinidae.
Wikispecies has information on: Testudinidae.
- Gulf Coast Turtle and Tortoise Society* Tortoise World - Several Types of Tortoises Archived 2007-08-20 at the Wayback Machine
- Chelonia: Conservation and Care of Turtles.
- Infotortuga
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