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The word turtle is borrowed from the French word tortue or tortre 'turtle, tortoise'. [3] It is a common name and may be used without knowledge of taxonomic distinctions. In North America, it may denote the order as a whole. In Britain, the name is used for sea turtles as opposed to freshwater terrapins and land-dwelling tortoises. In Australia ...
Sea turtles, along with other turtles and tortoises, are part of the order Testudines. All species except the leatherback sea turtle are in the family Cheloniidae. The superfamily name Chelonioidea and family name Cheloniidae are based on the Ancient Greek word for tortoise: χελώνη (khelōnē). [16]
The green sea turtle ( Chelonia mydas ), also known as the green turtle, black (sea) turtle or Pacific green turtle, [ 4] is a large species of sea turtles of the family Cheloniidae. It is the only species in the genus Chelonia. [ 5] Its range extends throughout tropical and subtropical seas around the world, with two distinct populations in ...
On the other hand, one scientific paper has claimed that the species can weigh up to 1,000 kg (2,200 lb) without providing more verifiable detail. [30] The leatherback turtle is scarcely larger than any other sea turtle upon hatching, as they average 61.3 mm (2.41 in) in carapace length and weigh around 46 g (1.6 oz) when freshly hatched. [24]
The northern map turtle gets both its common and scientific names from the markings on its carapace, which resemble contour lines on a map or chart. [5] These lines are usually shades of yellow, tan, or orange, and are surrounded by dark borders, with the rest of the carapace being olive or greyish brown.
Common box turtle. The common box turtle ( Terrapene carolina) is a species of box turtle with five existing subspecies. It is found throughout the Eastern United States and Mexico. The box turtle has a distinctive hinged lower shell that allows it to completely enclose itself, like a box. Its upper jaw is hooked.
The southern painted turtle ( C. dorsalis) is alternately considered the only other species in Chrysemys, or another subspecies of C. picta . The adult painted turtle is 13–25 cm (5–10 in) long; the male is smaller than the female. The turtle's top shell is dark and smooth, without a ridge.
The loggerhead sea turtle ( Caretta caretta) is a species of oceanic turtle distributed throughout the world. It is a marine reptile, belonging to the family Cheloniidae. The average loggerhead measures around 90 cm (35 in) in carapace length when fully grown. The adult loggerhead sea turtle weighs approximately 135 kg (298 lb), with the ...