I’m writing this ABC book for my 12 year-old grandson, Eric. I’ve found many interesting facts about the animals I’ve featured, and I hope children of all ages, 9 -109 will enjoy them, too.
 

 T is for Turtle

Turtle, Tortoise and Terrapin are all names for the hard-shelled, egg-laying reptiles. But, they are all turtles.

 Sea Turtle                        Tortoise                                          Terrapin

Turtles - Marine, ocean-going creatures.

Sea Turtles spend most of their life in the ocean, only leaving to lay their eggs in the sand. They have limbs that look like flippers with webbed feet. Although this helps them swim, it does make it a lot harder for them to move over the sand when they come to lay their eggs.

Sea turtles are very slow growing, and this most likely accounts for their long life. Although it’s hard to know how long they can live, some think it’s around fifty to eighty years for adults weighing between 240lbs and 420lbs. For the giant leatherback turtles, it is thought it could be well over one hundred years, with the largest of these coming in at a massive 2,000 pounds! It’s easy to recognise the leatherbacks from other turtles because they don’t have the hard shell. 

Many turtle species are illegally hunted throughout the world for their meat and eggs, and for other products including oil, leather and their shells. This has meant many are considered critically endangered.

Giant Leatherback turtles

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Tortoises - Land dwellers

Tortoises are turtles that are slow-moving land reptiles who like to live in warm climates. They have hard, scaly, domed shells into which they can draw in their heads. This is especially handy for protection against predators. They have thick, chunky legs, and round, stumpy feet with claws for gripping and walking on land. Tortoises from hot countries have a lighter coloured shell than those from cooler climates.                                                

Because tortoises don’t swim, they will burrow in the sand or earth to reach the cooler soil, or sand, in which to lay. 

When the amazing Galapagos tortoises were first discovered by Bishop Thomás de Berlanga, four hundred years ago, there were 300,000 giant tortoises living happily on this island, which was given the old Spanish name Galapago, meaning tortoise. Then man came, and tens of thousands were slaughtered to be eaten by pirates and sailors; their shells were kept as trophies. Added to that, the habitats of these giant tortoises were, over the years, destroyed by the introduction of goats, pigs and rats. In the 1950s the Galapagos Islands were declared to be a national park. 

Lonesome George

The most famous tortoise in the world was Lonesome George, the last of the La Pinta giant Galapagos tortoise subspecies, who died in June 2012 at one hundred years old. He was the poster boy for conservation throughout his life, and his death represented the extinction of these once-great creatures. 

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Terrapin - Land and water dwellers.

Terrapins are turtles that spend time both on land and in water. The wild terrapins enjoy brackish, swampy water, while others like the freshwater ponds and lakes. They both like to climb out of the water to lay on logs and rocks to sunbathe. The word ‘terrapin’ comes from an Algonquian Indian word meaning ‘a little turtle.’ 

The wild swampy water terrapins on the left, and the freshwater terrapins are on the right.

 

Terrapins are very aggressive and will bite. They also ‘bark’ when something upsets them and makes them angry. The terrapins in New Zealand are usually infected with salmonella bacteria. This can be passed on to humans if they come into contact with them. 

The male red-eared terrapins have very long claws on their forefeet and longer, thicker tails than the females. It is almost impossible to tell the gender of a terrapin until it is about eighteen to twenty-four months old. Females may breed at three to four years of age, but this timing seems to be related more to size than to age.

Some extra fun facts of the three Ts

The names terrapin, turtle, and tortoise can cause confusion. Turtles are sea chelonians, tortoises are land chelonians, and terrapins are freshwater and swampy water chelonians that spend some time on land.

Turtles can hold their breath for five hours. Tortoises can also hold their breath for a long time, but they need to empty their lungs before bringing their head back inside their shell. Terrapins can hold their breath up to thirty minutes.  

Turtles love to eat jellyfish. They have special spikes in their mouth to hold them so they don't get away. Because their head doesn't slip into their shell like other turtles, they are more vulnerable to predators. 

In most species, gender is determined during fertilization. However, the sex of most turtles, alligators, and crocodiles is determined after fertilization. 

The sex of a turtle hatchling is determined by the temperature of the sand where its nest is.  Research has shown that the hatchlings will be male if the temperature is below 81.86 Fahrenheit. If it is over 87.8, they will be female. When temperatures fluctuate between the two, there will be the perfect mix of males and females.

Unfortunately, as the Earth is experiencing climate change, the warmer sand means more females are born. Therefore, the species will not have a chance to continue because there will not be enough to mate and produce offspring.

Hopefully, conditions will improve as scientists make more observations and discoveries. Then, they can plan for the future of this species, along with many more facing difficult circumstances.