TURTLES. 



453 



Chiosternimi Ims four repvesontatives in tlic United States, of whioli C. petumyl- 

 vanicuiii, the nnnl-tortoise, very generally ilistriliuted over the southeastern two thirds 

 of tlie United States, is of small size and resembles the previous species, tliough the 

 [ilastron is divided in to transverse ])ortions, the anterior and ])osterior of which are 

 (•a|ial)ie of more or less vertical motion, enabling tlie retracted head and limbs to be 

 more thoroughly protected. It is an animal which readily takes the bait, and is of no 

 little annoyance to the angler. Other sjiecies arc found in the southwestern ]iarts of 

 the Union. 



Testudixid^ embraces those turtles wliich have the shell very convex and whose 

 feet are developed for a terrestrial life. The toes are distinct, the feet club-shaped, and 

 the caudal plates united. The Xorth American representatives are two in number, 









Fig. 'i(jl. — ('inoHtc-nium pentisi/lvanicum, niwd-turtle. 



Testudo Carolina and T. uijasshii, the latter of the southern Pncitic and the region 

 around Sonora. The former, the common ' goither,' the shell of which is often fifteen 

 inches in length, is a strong animal, and is more or less gregarious, troops being 

 often met with in the pine-barren country. Though in confinement they cat at all 

 times of the day, they are said to be, naturally, of nocturnal habits, making midnight 

 raids on the farmers' sweet potatoes, bulbous j>lants, and melons, and retiring to their 

 burrows during the wanner portions of the day, or on the approach of showers, where 

 they also hibernate. These homes are inhaluted l)y a single j'air, and are dug to a 

 length of four feet, the interior being large and spacious, while the mouth is only the 

 size of the larger animal. The negroes, in capturing the 'gophers,' sink a dee]i ]iil in 

 front of the hole, and the unfortunate animals, on sauntering out, as tliey are obliged 

 to daily, droji in, and are unable to escai)e. The females are considerably larger than 



