282 THE WORLD OF ANIMAL LIFE 



large bony plates, which are joined to one another in just the 

 same way as the bones in our own skulls. 



Tortoises have no teeth, but the edges of their mouths are 

 horny, and so sharp that they easily cut away the herbage upon 

 which they feed. In some of the larger tortoises these jaws are 

 so strong, and so keenly edged, that they have been known to 

 snap off the fingers of a man's hand at a single bite. 



If you look at a tortoise while it is walking, you will see that its 

 body is not well supported by its legs, but drags along the ground. 

 This is the case with most reptiles. They may be said to only 

 waddle along; while almost the whole weight of their bodies 

 often rests upon the ground. As has been said, snakes have no 

 legs at all. 



The feet of the tortoise are armed with stout, strong claws. 

 With these the animal is able to dig into the ground. 



Those who have kept a tortoise as a pet must have noticed that 

 it disappears about the end of September, and is not seen again 

 until April or May. The explanation is, that the tortoise in this 

 country, like the hedgehog and the bat, falls into a deep sleep at 

 the approach of winter, and does not awake again until the warm 

 days of spring come round once more. 



TURTLES (Family Chelonid^) 



In many respects Turtles are very much like tortoises. They 

 have the same curious "shells" enclosing their bodies, and the 

 same sharp, horny jaws. But their legs are longer than those 

 of tortoises, and are flattened and widened out so as to serve as 

 paddles. If we could strip off the shell, we should find that the 

 ribs are more free than in the tortoises. 



Turtles are capital swimmers, and spend the greater part of 

 their lives in the sea. Indeed, they hardly ever leave the water 

 except for the purpose of laying their eggs. Most of them feed 

 upon sea-weed, but one or two are carnivorous, and eat star- 

 fishes, small crabs, and the various creatures which we generally 

 — although wrongly — call "shell-fish". 



