CHAPTER XXXVII 
THE ORDER OE TORTOISES, TERRAPINS, AND TURTLES 
C HE L ONI A 
Surely there are few intelligent persons to 
whom a live turtle does not appeal. From the 
impregnable box tortoise to the grim alligator 
terrapin, the giant tortoise of Galapagos, and the 
marine monsters of the Gulf Stream, the diversity 
in form and habit is very great. Fortunately, 
however, a fixed knowledge of twelve species 
will give a very good foundation on which to 
build up this Order. 
SKELETON OF A FALSE GEOGRAPHIC TURTLE 
( Graptemys pseudogeographicus.) 
P, plastron, Hu, humerus, 
C, carapace, Tib, tibia, 
Ra, radius, Fib, fibula, 
Ul, ulna, Fe, femur. 
Sc, scapula. 
General Characters. — A member of the Order 
of Turtles is a reptile which has its skeleton on 
the outside of its body, and its vital organs com- 
pletely encased in a box of bone, called a shell. 
The top half of the shell is called the car'apace, 
and it is formed by the widening of the ribs until 
they grow together and firmly unite wherever 
their edges meet. The lower portion of the shell 
is called the plas'tron. The carapace of a male 
tortoise is hollowed out underneath, but that of 
the female is flat. The shell lias an opening at 
the front end to receive the head, neck and fore- 
legs, and the rear is open to afford space for the 
hind legs and tail. The shell of a turtle is a city 
of refuge, into which its owner withdraws its 
head and feet whenever threatened by enemies. 
In some species the shell is a remarkably perfect 
means of defence. 
These reptiles have no teeth, but the edges of 
their strong, horny jaws are sufficiently sharp 
and chisel-like to enable them to cut up vegetable 
food. The head and neck move freely, in and 
out. The skin is very tough and leathery. Like 
other reptiles, the members of this Order repro- 
duce by laying eggs and burying them, to be 
hatched by the sun. Some of the large tortoises 
live to the greatest age attained by any living 
creatures now on the earth. 
In the original classification of the land-going 
tortoises, and the water-loving turtles and ter- 
rapins, it was an unfortunate mistake that the 
name “tortoise” was not limited to the dry-land 
species, “terrapin” to the hard-shelled species 
inhabiting fresh water, and “turtle” to the spe- 
cies with flippers which inhabit the sea. To-day 
the names “ tortoise ” and “turtle ” are applied so 
indiscriminately through all three of the groups 
mentioned, they are useless as distinctive titles 
and the mixture is mischievously confusing. In 
the interest of common sense I therefore propose 
the following revised system of these common 
names : 
1. All Chelonians of the land only shall 
be called Tortoises. 
2. All Chelonians of fresh-water shall 
be called Terrapins. 
3. All Chelonians of the sea to be 
called Turtles. 
To this at least one person will henceforth try 
to adhere. 
