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SAVE THE TURTLES
General Turtle Facts
- There are 270 endangered turtle species in the world; 56 endangered turtle species in the US. Worldwide half of ALL turtle species are in trouble.
- Turtles are the only reptiles that do not have teeth. Instead they have strong horny beaks. They are also the only reptiles with hard shells. The top shell is called the carapace and the bottom shell is called the plastron. A turtle's backbone is attached to its top shell.
- Turtles are the longest-lived vertebrates. Some turtles live to be over 100 years old.
- The gender of most turtles is determined by environmental cues, not genetically as occurs in mammals. The temperature at which eggs incubate determines whether the hatchlings will be male or female.
- Leatherback turtles hatch out of an egg the size of a Ping-Pong ball and grow to become the largest reptiles in the world (by weight). The giant leatherback turtle is the largest sea turtle. A leatherback that washed up dead on the coast of Wales weighed over 2,000 pounds and measured 9-1/2 feet from head to tail.
Click on a link to learn more about:
Terrapins
Desert Tortoises
Sea Turtles
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