NEW YORK ZOOLOGICAL PARK. 173 
GIANT TORTOISE. 
With a wonderfully rich Chelonian fauna on the western 
continent to provide for, there is little room to spare for 
Old World forms, and the temptation to make this col- 
lection strictly Occidental, is almost too great to be resisted. 
For the sake of brevity and clearness, only six types have 
been chosen for special mention. 
The following species taken together fairly represent the 
different forms of Chelonians, from the highest to the lowest: 
The Alligator Turtle, (Macrochelys lacertina), is the larg- 
est fresh-water chelonian in North America. In form and 
temper it resembles the common snapping turtle of the 
North, and its home is in the Gulf States. The largest of 
the two Louisiana specimens on exhibition weighs 115 
pounds. 
The Snapping Turtle, (Chelydra serpentina), which is the 
most courageous and pugnacious of all turtles, is rather 
povrly protected by its shell, and must therefore fight for its 
place in nature. 
The Painted Turtle, (Chrysemys picta), is a species of 
wide and common distribution, and fairly representative of 
the host of fresh water terrapins and turtles so common 
throughout the United States in ponds and streams of all 
sorts. 
The Box Tortoise, (Cistudo carolina), lives on land, and as 
a means of perfect protection has been enabled by nature 
completely to withdraw its head and legs within its shell, 
