TESTUDO. 



being found in Italy. Sardinia, France, Hungary, Pruffia, convex, carinatcd and rough 



&c inhabiting lakes and muddy waters, a.id feeding on defcnbed as having palmated h-et and flattiOi (hell, with all 



The fcabra of Linnxus is 



&c. inhabiting lakes and muddy 



aquatic plants, infetls, fnails, and imall hfh . , ■ r • • c i u c u v r i, * » 



faid to be "ood as food, for which pnrpofeu is fold in the ot this fpecies js figured by Seba ; it meafures about two 



The flefh is the intermediate fcutella elevated on the back. The fliell 



markets, and occafionallv kept in ponds, and fed or fattened 

 with lettuce-leaves, broad, &c. &c. It may be conveniently 

 kept in a cellar and fed with oats, fcattered on the floor, 

 which it Precdily eats when thev begin to germinate. 



inches and a half in length, and nearly two inches in breadth ; 

 being of a cordatcd figure, or fomewhat pointed at the 

 bottom. Its colour is light-reddifh, variegated on tlie head 

 and (hell with white lines and fpots ; the feet marked witli 

 depolitsits eggs m fandy and funny places in the beginning red fpecks, and having each five toes with (harp claws ; the 

 of fprinir which are not hatched, as it is pretended, till head prominent, and eyes fmall. Shaw. 

 . f ^' ,• r •^_ Squamv*ta ; Scaly Tortoife. With ovate body, fmooth 



beneath, but covered above, together with the neck, feet, 

 and tail, with numerous fcales. According to Bontius, in 

 his Hiftory of Java, this fingular fpecies is an inhabitant of 



the fucceeding fpring. 



^fF,MBKA^■\CEA. With three claws on the feet, and 

 (hell (Iriatcd on the back, membranaceous, ovate and grey. 

 Found in the fea that wa(hcs Guiana. See T. Ferox. 



Tkiunguis. With three claws on the feet, the didc of 

 the back rugofe and orbiculated, the lower border fmooth, 

 and noftrils in a cylinder elevated above and projefting be- 

 yond the head. Found rarely in the Nile, and fuppofed to 

 be the fame with the former. 



Cartilaginea. Shell orbicular, membranaceous, ftn- 

 ated on the back ; three claws on the feet, and nofe cylindric 

 and prolongated. This is the T. Boddaerti and a rare fpe- 

 cies. See the next article. 



Ferox ; Fierce Tortoife. With ovate, cartilaginous 

 fliell ; three claws on the feet, and tubular, prominent nof- 

 trils. Dr. Shaw queries whether the T. roftrata of 

 Schoepf, the T. with palmated feet, &c. of Thunberg, 

 the T. cartilaginea of Boddaert, the T. Boddaerti of 

 Schneider, the T. triunguis of Forlkal, and the T. mem- 

 branaceaof Blumenberg,. do not belong to this fpecies. 

 This is a remarkable Ipecies, and diftinguilhed by the un- 

 ufual nature of its fhield, w^hich is hard and offeous only in 

 the middle part, while the edges gradually degenerate into a 

 flexible coriaceous verge ; obfcuiely marked with five or fix 

 traiifverfe bands, and granulated with fmall warts or promi- 

 nences, gradually enlarging as they approach the flexible 

 edge ; the head rather fmall, fomawhat trigonal, with the 

 fnout much lengthened, and the upper part drawn out into 

 a fub-cylindric form, terminated by the noftrils, and pro- 

 jefting much beyond the lower mandible ; the neck, when 

 retrained, thick, and furrounded with many folds of (kin, 

 but when exferted, equal in length to that of the whole (hell ; 

 the legs fliort, thick, and covered with a wreathed lliin ; 



fre(h waters, where it burrows under the banks, in order 

 perhaps to depofit its eggs. The Javanefe call it faunah, or 

 the digger, and the Chinefe lary, or the runner, a burlefque 

 title given to it on account of its flow pace. Its fle(h is 

 faid to be extremely dehcate ; and the Chinefe ufe the pul- 

 verized fcales dilTolved in water, as a remedy in dyfenteric 

 cafes and againft the colic. It is faid to prey on fmall fi(h. 

 This fpecies feenis to conneft the lizard and tortoife tribes. 

 Shaw. 



LtJTARlA ; Mud or Brown Tortoife. With fiattiili 

 (liell, and tail half the length of the body ; carinated, fays 

 Gmelin, behind with three fcutella. This fpecies is faid 

 to be common in many parts of Europe, as well as Afia, 

 being found in India, Japan, &c. According to Cepede, 

 it is not more than feven or eight inches from the tip of the 

 nofe to that of the tail, and about three or four inches in 

 breadth ; the dilk confills of thirteen pieces, ftriated and 

 flightly punftated in the centre, and along the middle range 

 runs a longitudinal carina ; the margin confifts of twenty-three 

 pieces, bordered with (light ftriae ; the colour of the (hell 

 is blackifh and alfo of the (Ivin ; the feet are webbed, with 

 five toes before, and four behind ; the exterior toe of each 

 foot is unarmed ; the tail is ftretched out in walking, from 

 which circumftance the anirtial has been called " Mus aqua- 

 tilis." Like other tortoifes, it fometimes utters a kiiid of 

 broken hifs. This animal is common in France, and parti- 

 cularly in Languedoc and many parts of Provence ; and in 

 a lake, fituated in the plain of Durance, fuch numbers were 

 found as to fupply the neighbouring peafantry for more 



the feet furni(hed with ftrong and broad webs, connefting than three months. Although this fpecies be aquatic, it 

 .1 .1 in. r 1 ,T _ .1 _. ^ !'__/! u r-_* r...- _i 1 ;*- — i — i j: — ; i.^it„,.. — i ; — 



the three laft toes of each ; the three firft on each foot fur 

 nilhed with ftrong claws, and the remaining ones unarmed ; 

 having, befides the proper toes, two fpurious ones on the 

 hind and one on the fore feet, ftrengthening and expanding 

 the web ; the tail fhort, pointed, and curving inwards ; the 

 eyes very fmall and round ; the colour above deep brownilh- 

 olive, and below white ; the (hell marked beneath in a very 

 elegant manner, with ramifications of velTels. 



This fpecies is found in Pennfylvania, Carolina, &c. &c. ; 



and is pofTeffed, diflFerently from moft others of the tribe, of 



confiderable vigour and fwiftncfs of motion, fpringing to- 

 wards its alTailant, when attacked, witl great alacrity and 



fiercenefs ; about a foot and half long, and fifteen inches 



broad. It was firft defcribed by Dr. Garden. Its fle(h is 



faid to be extremely delicate, being equal, if not fuperior, 



even to that of the green turtle. The great foft-billed 



turtle, defcribed by Mr. Bartram in his Travels, appears to 



be the fame with this. Found in all the rivers, lakes, and 



pools of Eaft Florida, weighing from 30 to 40 pounds. 



The T. roftrata of Thunberg feems to be the young of the 



fpecies above defcribed ; and the T. triunguis of Forflcall f<3 as to be perfectly fecure. The defence of this httle • 



is allied to the fame fpecies. Shaw. animal, which rarely exceeds four or five inches ii. length, 



ScABBA. With fmooth difcoloured head, and fliield oval, is fuch, that k is uninjured by a weight of 500 Or 6co pounds, 



' and 



always lays its eggs on land, digging a hollow and covering 

 them with mould. This animal is ufeful in a garden, which 

 it frees from noxious animals, without doing any mifchief 

 itfelf. It may be domefticated, and kept in a bafon or re- 

 ceptacle of water, fo contrived on the edges as to give it a 

 ready egrefs, when it wifhes to wander about for prey. In 

 fi(h-ponds it is deftruftive. Shaw. Gmelin mentions two 

 varieties, "viz. T. tabulata and T. campanulata. 



SCORPIOIDES. See T. FlMBRIATA. 



Hermanni. With four claws on the feet, and the tip 

 of the tail unguiculated. See T. Tbicarinata. 



Gmelin mentions feveral varieties of this fpecies. 



Carolina. With digitated feet, gibbous fliell, and no 

 tail. This is the T. claufa, or clo-fe tortoife, of Linnaeus and 

 other writers, with blackifti (hell, irregularly fpotted with 

 yeOow, with obtufe dorfal carina, and bivalve undcr-fhell 

 completely clofing the upper, whence it obtains its name. 

 The under part of the (hell is fo continued round the 

 margin, that when the animal withdraws its head and legs, 

 it is able accurately to clofe all parts of the (hell together. 



