Encyclopedia
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Category: Reptiles
Tent Tortoise
A small tortoise with a strikingly tall, pyramidal (tent-like) shell decorated with radiating yellow and black…
Spider Tortoise
A small tortoise with a beautiful shell bearing dark 'spider-web' radiating lines on a pale background.
Flat-tailed Tortoise
A small, extremely flattened tortoise whose shell is flatter than that of the spider tortoise, an adaptation f…
Leopard Tortoise
A large, striking tortoise whose high, domed shell is covered with bold black spots and blotches on a yellow-t…
Greek Tortoise (Spur-thighed Tortoise)
A medium-sized tortoise with a high domed shell and distinctive conical 'spurs' on each thigh, giving it its a…
Hermann's Tortoise
A handsome medium-sized tortoise with a domed yellow-and-black shell and two dark bands on the plastron, plus …
Russian Tortoise (Horsfield's Tortoise)
A small, hardy tortoise of the Central Asian steppes, with a flattened, rounded shell that is olive to tan.
Egyptian Tortoise
One of the smallest tortoises in the world, with a pale, high-domed shell that may have darker marginal markin…
Marginated Tortoise
The largest European tortoise, recognised by the flared, serrated rear marginal scutes of its dark, elongated …
Seychelles Giant Tortoise Complex (Geochelone gigantea (syn. Aldabrachelys))
A grouping of the giant tortoises of the Seychelles, with several forms historically recognised (gigantea, hol…
African Spurred Tortoise (alt.)
(Synonym of Centrochelys sulcata; the two names are used interchangeably in the literature.
Western Pond Turtle
A medium-sized turtle with a smooth, low, dark olive-brown shell and a yellow throat.
Spotted Turtle
A small turtle with a smooth, jet-black carapace dotted with yellow or orange spots, whose number and pattern …
Blanding's Turtle
A distinctive turtle with a highly domed, black shell flecked with yellow and a bright yellow chin and throat.
European Pond Turtle
The only turtle native to central and western Europe, with a dark shell and scattered yellow spots or lines.
Wood Turtle
A medium-sized turtle with a sculpted, pyramid-like shell (the scutes look carved) in grey-brown and orange pa…
Bog Turtle
The smallest turtle in North America, with a dark, domed shell and a characteristic bright orange or yellow pa…
Northern Map Turtle
Named for the fine, map-like lines of yellow tracing the veins of its olive-to-brown carapace.
False Map Turtle
Closely resembles the map turtle, with map-like yellow markings on a grey-brown shell and a distinct dark spot…
Black-knobbed Map Turtle
A small map turtle with a dark shell topped by prominent black knobs (spines) on the midline of the vertebral …
Diamondback Terrapin
The only turtle in North America that lives in brackish, coastal salt-marsh waters.
River Cooter
A large freshwater turtle with a flattened, olive-to-brown shell bearing yellow net-like or 'C' markings, and …
Florida Cooter
A large, flattened turtle of the southeastern coastal plain with a smooth dark shell and a distinctive 'C'-sha…
Florida Red-bellied Cooter
Endemic to Florida, this large cooter has a dark shell with faint yellow markings and a distinctive red or ora…
