24 



TESTUDINATA. — TRIONYCHID^. 



(Trionyx spiniferus, Lesueur) inhabits the great 

 lakes, and many of the rivers of that continent. 

 It is a ferocious tyrant of the waters, devouring 

 ducks and other fowl, the young of alligators, and 

 fishes, with great voracity. It attains a large size. 



SOFT TORTOISE. 



Pennant mentions some which weighed seventy 

 pounds ; one which he kept for three months 

 weighed twenty pounds, and the buckler or cara- 

 pace of this specimen was twenty inches in 

 length, while the neck and head measured thir- 

 teen inches and a half more. The upper parts 

 vary in tint, being brown or grey of various 

 shades, irregularly marbled, and frequently stud- 

 ded with dots : the under surface is whitish, or 

 of the same tint as the human nails. 



Towards the end of April or May, according to 

 M. Lesueur, the females of this species crawl out 

 of the rivers, for the purpose of seeking out 

 places suitable for the deposition of their eggs. 

 Sandy spots exposed to the sun are chosen, and 



