World Turtle Day

Today we celebrate turtles.  I love turtles.

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Turtles are reptiles.  They belong to the order: Reptilia.  

Species: Testudines. This includes both extinct and living species.

(All tortoises are turtles, but not all turtles are tortoises.  Can you figure that out?  For the purpose of this post I will refer to turtles, but include all tortoises as well.)

Testudines are reptiles with a body encased in a bony shell.  The top part is called the carapace.  The bottom part is the plastron.  The two parts are joined along the sides of the body.  The shell is an integral part of the turtle.  It cannot leave it.  The shell is not shed like the skins of other reptiles.  

There are 356 species of turtles around the world.  Both fresh water and salt water.

The turtle's shell protects them.  They are slow and can easily be caught by predators.  Turtles don't have teeth.  They eat by cutting pieces of flesh or vegetation by using their sharp beaks.

Turtles are ectotherms.  That means they are cold blooded.   They do not have an internal mechanism for regulating body temperature.  Turtles rely on the sun for warmth.  They will often sun themselves on rocks to absorb heat.  

Turtles breathe air and lay their eggs on land.  Female sea turtles scrape nests with their hind legs, lay their eggs and cover them up.  Then they return to the sea, leaving the hatchlings to fend for themselves.

As a result their habitats around the world are being destroyed.  Turtles and their eggs are eaten in many parts of the world.  In some areas local populations and even entire species have been hunted to extinction.  They need our protection.

While wilderness camping in Algonquin Park some years ago we came upon a lovely camping spot at the end of a long peninsula.  Right in the middle of the site sat a gigantic tortoise.  It was a fantastic  wildlife sighting!  We set up camp on that site trying not to interfere with the reptile.  It slowly moved away into the forest.  What an honor and privilege to have been able to see this wonderful creature so up close and wild.  We share the earth with these animals.  It was an exciting experience and I will never forget it.

So Happy World Turtle Day!

I love turtles.  Or did I mention that already?