Turtle

The word turtle is borrowed from the French word or 'turtle, tortoise'. 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, which lacks true tortoises (family Testudinidae), non-marine turtles were traditionally called tortoises, but more recently turtle has been used for the entire group. The name of the order, Testudines ( ), is based on the Latin word 'tortoise'; and was coined by German naturalist August Batsch in 1788. which are based on the Ancient Greek word () 'tortoise'. Testudines is the official order name due to the principle of priority. The term chelonian is used as a formal name for members of the group. == Anatomy and physiology==

Size The largest living species of turtle (and fourth-largest reptile) is the leatherback turtle, which can reach over in length and weigh over . The largest known turtle was Archelon ischyros, a Late Cretaceous sea turtle up to long, wide between the tips of the front flippers, and estimated to have weighed over . The smallest living turtle is Chersobius signatus of South Africa, measuring no more than in length and weighing . Shell of a tortoise skeleton|alt=Photograph of one half of a tortoise skeleton, cut in half vertically showing the vertebrae following curving along the carapace The shell of a turtle is unique among vertebrates and serves to protect the animal and provide shelter from the elements. It is primarily made of 50–60 bones and consists of two parts: the domed, dorsal (back) carapace and the flatter, ventral (belly) plastron. They are connected by lateral (side) extensions of the plastron. The shoulder girdle in turtles is made up of two bones, the scapula and the coracoid. Both the shoulder and pelvic girdles of turtles are located within the shell and hence are effectively within the rib cage. The trunk ribs grow over the shoulder girdle during development. Turtle scutes are usually structured like mosaic tiles, but some species, like the hawksbill sea turtle, have overlapping scutes on the carapace. The shapes of turtle shells vary with the adaptations of the individual species, and sometimes with sex. Land-dwelling turtles are more dome-shaped, which appears to make them more resistant to being crushed by large animals. Aquatic turtles have flatter, smoother shells that allow them to cut through the water. Sea turtles in particular have streamlined shells that reduce drag and increase stability in the open ocean. Some turtle species have pointy or spiked shells that provide extra protection from predators and camouflage against the leafy ground. The lumps of a tortoise shell can tilt its body when it gets flipped over, allowing it to flip back. In male tortoises, the tip of the plastron is thickened and used for butting and ramming during combat. Shells vary in flexibility. Some species, such as box turtles, lack the lateral extensions and instead have the carapace bones fully fused or ankylosed together. Several species have hinges on their shells, usually on the plastron, which allow them to expand and contract. Softshell turtles have rubbery edges, due to the loss of bones. The leatherback turtle has hardly any bones in its shell, but has thick connective tissue and an outer layer of leathery skin. Head and neck The turtle's skull is unique among living amniotes (which includes reptiles, birds and mammals); it is solid and rigid with no openings for muscle attachment (temporal fenestrae). Muscles instead attach to recesses in the back of the skull. Turtle skulls vary in shape, from the long and narrow skulls of softshells to the broad and flattened skull of the mata mata. Some turtle species have developed large and thick heads, allowing for greater muscle mass and stronger bites. In several species, some individuals can develop larger heads and thicker muscles than others, a phenomenon known as 'megacephaly'. This is likely due to differences in diet. Turtles that are carnivorous or durophagous (eating hard-shelled animals) have the most powerful bites. For example, the durophagous Mesoclemmys nasuta has a bite force of . Species that are insectivorous, piscivorous (fish-eating), or omnivorous have lower bite forces. Living turtles lack teeth but have beaks made of keratin sheaths along the edges of the jaws. The necks of turtles are highly flexible, possibly to compensate for their rigid shells. Some species, like sea turtles, have short necks while others, such as snake-necked turtles, have long ones. Despite this, all turtle species have eight neck vertebrae, a consistency not found in other reptiles but similar to mammals. Some snake-necked turtles have both long necks and large heads, limiting their ability to lift them when not in water. Some turtles have folded structures in the larynx or glottis that vibrate to produce sound. Other species have elastin-rich vocal cords. Limbs and locomotion Due to their heavy shells, turtles are slow-moving on land. A desert tortoise moves at only . By contrast, sea turtles can swim at . Compared to other reptiles, turtles tend to have reduced tails, but these vary in both length and thickness among species and between sexes. Snapping turtles and the big-headed turtle have longer tails; the latter uses it for balance while climbing. The cloaca is found underneath and at the base, and the tail itself houses the reproductive organs. Hence, males have longer tails to contain the penis. In sea turtles, the tail is longer and more prehensile in males, who use it to grasp mates. Several turtle species have spines on their tails. Senses has an exceptional seven types of color-detecting cells in its eyes. Sea turtles orient themselves on land by night, using visual features detected in dim light. They can use their eyes in clear surface water, muddy coasts, the darkness of the deep ocean, and also above water. Unlike in terrestrial turtles, the cornea (the curved surface that lets light into the eye) does not help to focus light on the retina, so focusing underwater is handled entirely by the lens, behind the cornea. The cone cells contain oil droplets placed to shift perception toward the red part of the spectrum, improving color discrimination. Visual acuity, studied in hatchlings, is highest in a horizontal band with retinal cells packed about twice as densely as elsewhere. This gives the best vision along the visual horizon. Sea turtles do not appear to use polarized light for orientation as many other animals do. The deep-diving leatherback turtle lacks specific adaptations to low light, such as large eyes, large lenses, or a reflective tapetum. It may rely on seeing the bioluminescence of prey when hunting in deep water. Turtles have no ear openings; the eardrum is covered with scales and encircled by a bony otic capsule, which is absent in other reptiles. Their hearing thresholds are high in comparison to other reptiles, reaching up to 500 Hz in air, but underwater they are more attuned to lower frequencies. The loggerhead sea turtle has been shown experimentally to respond to low sounds, with maximal sensitivity between 100 and 400 Hz. Turtles have olfactory (smell) and vomeronasal receptors along the nasal cavity, the latter of which are used to detect chemical signals. Experiments on green sea turtles showed they could learn to respond to a selection of different odorant chemicals such as triethylamine and cinnamaldehyde, which were detected by olfaction in the nose. Such signals could be used in navigation. Breathing nose-breathing at river surface|alt=photo of a river turtle with only its nose above water The rigid shell of turtles is not capable of expanding and making room for the lungs, as in other amniotes, so they have had to evolve special adaptations for respiration. The lungs of turtles are attached directly to the carapace above while below, connective tissue attaches them to the organs. They have multiple lateral (side) and medial (middle) chambers (the numbers of which vary between species) and one terminal (end) chamber. The lungs are ventilated using specific groups of abdominal muscles attached to the organs that pull and push on them. During exhalation, the contraction of the transversus abdominis muscle propels the organs into the lungs and expels air. Conversely, during inhalation, the relaxing and flattening of the oblique abdominis muscle pulls the transversus back down, allowing air back into the lungs. Some species can respire through the cloaca, which contains large sacs that are lined with many finger-like projections that take up dissolved oxygen from the water. Circulation emerging from period of brumation, in which it buried itself in mud. Turtles have multiple circulatory and physiological adaptations to enable them to go long periods without breathing. Turtles are capable of enduring periods of anaerobic respiration longer than many other vertebrates. This process breaks down sugars incompletely to lactic acid, rather than all the way to carbon dioxide and water as in aerobic (oxygen-based) respiration. Osmoregulation In sea turtles, the bladder is one unit and in most freshwater turtles, it is double-lobed. Sea turtle bladders are connected to two small accessory bladders, located at the sides to the neck of the urinary bladder and above the pubis. Arid-living tortoises have bladders that serve as reserves of water, storing up to 20% of their body weight in fluids. The fluids are normally low in solutes, but higher during droughts when the reptile gains potassium salts from its plant diet. The bladder stores these salts until the tortoise finds fresh drinking water. To regulate the amount of salt in their bodies, sea turtles and the brackish-living diamondback terrapin secrete excess salt in a thick sticky substance from their tear glands. Because of this, sea turtles may appear to be "crying" when on land. Thermoregulation s, regulate their temperature by basking in the sun.|alt=cooter turtles basking in sunshine near their pond Turtles, like other reptiles, have a limited ability to regulate their body temperature. This ability varies between species, and with body size. Small pond turtles regulate their temperature by crawling out of the water and basking in the sun, while small terrestrial turtles move between sunny and shady places to adjust their temperature. Large species, both terrestrial and marine, have sufficient mass to give them substantial thermal inertia, meaning that they heat up or cool down over many hours. The Aldabra giant tortoise weighs up to some and is able to allow its temperature to rise to some on a hot day, and to fall naturally to around by night. Some giant tortoises seek out shade to avoid overheating on sunny days. On Grand Terre Island, food is scarce inland, shade is scarce near the coast, and the tortoises compete for space under the few trees on hot days. Large males may push smaller females out of the shade, and some then overheat and die. == Behavior==

Diet and feeding grazing on seagrass |alt=Photograph of a green sea turtle on the seabed, feeding Most turtle species are opportunistic omnivores; land-dwelling species are more herbivorous and aquatic ones more carnivorous. Generally lacking speed and agility, most turtles feed either on plant material or on animals with limited movements like mollusks, worms, and insect larvae. The diet of an individual within a species may change with age, sex, and season, and may also differ between populations. In many species, juveniles are generally carnivorous but become more herbivorous as adults. Tortoises may bellow when courting and mating. The oblong turtle has a particularly large vocal range; producing sounds described as clacks, clicks, squawks, hoots, various kinds of chirps, wails, '''', grunts, growls, blow bursts, howls, and drum rolls. Play behavior has been documented in some turtle species. In the laboratory, Florida red-bellied cooters can learn novel tasks and have demonstrated a long-term memory of at least 7.5 months. Similarly, giant tortoises can learn and remember tasks, and master lessons much faster when trained in groups. Tortoises appear to be able to retain operant conditioning nine years after their initial training. Studies have shown that turtles can navigate the environment using landmarks and a map-like system resulting in accurate direct routes towards a goal. Navigation in turtles have been correlated to high cognition function in the medial cortex region of the brain. eating a turtle|alt=Photo of a large bird eating a turtle Defense When sensing danger, a turtle may flee, freeze or withdraw into its shell. Freshwater turtles flee into the water, though the Sonora mud turtle may take refuge on land as the shallow temporary ponds they inhabit make them vulnerable. When startled, a softshell turtle may dive underwater and bury itself under the sea floor. If a predator persists, the turtle may bite or discharge from its cloaca. Several species produce foul-smelling chemicals from musk glands. Other tactics include threat displays and Bell's hinge-back tortoise can play dead. When attacked, big-headed turtle hatchlings squeal, possibly startling the predator. Migration , Mexico. Female sea turtles migrate long distances to nest on favored beaches. Turtles are the only reptiles that migrate long distances, more specifically the marine species that can travel up to thousands of kilometers. Some non-marine turtles, such as the species of Geochelone (terrestrial), Chelydra (freshwater), and Malaclemys (estuarine), migrate seasonally over much shorter distances, up to around , to lay eggs. Such short migrations are comparable to those of some lizards, snakes, and crocodilians. Sea turtles nest in a specific area, such as a beach, leaving the eggs to hatch unattended. The young turtles leave that area, migrating long distances in the years or decades in which they grow to maturity, and then return seemingly to the same area every few years to mate and lay eggs, though the precision varies between species and populations. This "natal homing" has appeared remarkable to biologists, though there is now plentiful evidence for it, including from genetics. How sea turtles navigate to their breeding beaches remains unknown. One possibility is imprinting as in salmon, where the young learn the chemical signature, effectively the scent, of their home waters before leaving, and remember that when the time comes for them to return as adults. Another possible cue is the orientation of the Earth's magnetic field at the natal beach. There is experimental evidence that turtles have an effective magnetic sense, and that they use this in navigation. Proof that homing occurs is derived from genetic analysis of populations of loggerheads, hawksbills, leatherbacks, and olive ridleys by nesting place. For each of these species, the populations in different places have their own mitochondrial DNA genetic signatures that persist over the years. This shows that the populations are distinct and that homing must be occurring reliably. == Reproduction and life cycle==

Turtles have a wide variety of mating behaviors but do not form pair-bonds or social groups. In terrestrial species, males are often larger than females and fighting between males establishes a dominance hierarchy for access to mates. For most semi-aquatic and bottom-walking aquatic species, combat occurs less often. Males of these species instead may use their size advantage to mate forcibly. In fully aquatic species, males are often smaller than females and rely on courtship displays to gain mating access to females. In green sea turtles, females generally outnumber males. Courtship and mounting Courtship varies between species, and with habitat. It is often complex in aquatic species, both marine and freshwater, but simpler in the semi-aquatic mud turtles and snapping turtles. A male tortoise bobs his head, then subdues the female by biting and butting her before mounting. Female choice is important in some species, and female green sea turtles are not always receptive. As such, they have evolved behaviors to avoid the male's attempts at copulation, such as swimming away, confronting the male followed by biting or taking up a refusal position with her body vertical, her limbs widely outspread, and her plastron facing the male. If the water is too shallow for the refusal position, the females resort to beaching themselves, as the males do not follow them ashore. During copulation, the male turtle aligns his tail with the female's so he can insert his penis into her cloaca. Some female turtles can store sperm from multiple males and their egg clutches can have multiple sires. In other species, sex is determined genetically. The length of incubation for turtle eggs varies from two to three months for temperate species, and four months to over a year for tropical species. A Galápagos tortoise named Harriet was collected by Charles Darwin in 1835; it died in 2006, having lived for at least 176 years. Most wild turtles do not reach that age. Turtles keep growing new scutes under the previous scutes every year, allowing researchers to estimate how long they have lived. They also age slowly. The survival rate for adult turtles can reach 99% per year. ==Systematics and evolution==

Fossil history : isolated bony plates evolved to form a complete shell, in a sequence involving Pappochelys, Eorhynchochelys, Odontochelys, and Proganochelys. The theory accounted for the evolution of fossil pareiasaurs from Bradysaurus to Anthodon, but not for how the ribs could have become attached to the bony dermal plates. More recent discoveries have painted a different scenario for the evolution of the turtle's shell. The stem-turtles Eunotosaurus of the Middle Permian, Pappochelys of the Middle Triassic, and Eorhynchochelys of the Late Triassic lacked carapaces and plastrons but had shortened torsos, expanded ribs, and lengthened dorsal vertebrae. Also in the Late Triassic, Odontochelys had a partial shell consisting of a complete bony plastron and an incomplete carapace. The development of a shell reached completion with the Late Triassic Proganochelys, with its fully developed carapace and plastron. The oldest known members of the Pleurodira lineage are the Platychelyidae, from the Late Jurassic. The oldest known unambiguous cryptodire is Sinaspideretes, a close relative of softshell turtles, from the Late Jurassic of China. Turtles became highly diverse during the Cretaceous, as climatic conditions in this period were favourable for their global dispersal. During the Late Cretaceous and Cenozoic, members of the pleurodire families Bothremydidae and Podocnemididae became widely distributed in the Northern Hemisphere due to their coastal habits. The oldest known soft-shelled turtles and sea turtles appeared during the Early Cretaceous. Tortoises originated in Asia during the Eocene. A late surviving group of stem-turtles, the Meiolaniidae, survived in Australasia into the Pleistocene and Holocene. External relationships The turtles' exact ancestry has been disputed. It was believed they were the only surviving branch of the ancient evolutionary grade Anapsida, which includes groups such as procolophonids and pareiasaurs. All anapsid skulls lack a temporal opening while all other living amniotes have temporal openings. It was later suggested that the anapsid-like turtle skulls may be due to backward evolution rather than to anapsid descent. Fossil evidence has shown that early stem-turtles possessed small temporal openings. or, more commonly, as a sister group to extant archosaurs, though an analysis conducted by Tyler Lyson and colleagues (2012) recovered turtles as the sister group of lepidosaurs instead. Ylenia Chiari and colleagues (2012) analyzed 248 nuclear genes from 16 vertebrates and suggested that turtles share a more recent common ancestor with birds and crocodilians. The date of separation of turtles and birds and crocodilians was estimated to be during the Permian. Through genomic-scale phylogenetic study of ultra-conserved elements (UCEs) to clarify the placement of turtles within reptiles, Nicholas Crawford and colleagues (2012) similarly found that turtles are closer to birds and crocodilians. Using the draft (unfinished) genome sequences of the green sea turtle and the Chinese softshell turtle, Zhuo Wang and colleagues (2013) concluded that turtles are likely a sister group of crocodilians and birds. The external phylogeny of the turtles is shown in the cladogram below. The most recent common ancestor of living turtles, corresponding to the split between Pleurodira (side-necked species) and Cryptodira (hidden necked species), is estimated to have occurred around during the Late Triassic. Robert Thompson and colleagues (2021) comment that living turtles have low diversity, relative to how long they existed. Diversity has been stable, according to their analysis, except for a single rapid increase around the Eocene-Oligocene boundary some 30 million years ago, and a large regional extinction at roughly the same time. They suggest that global climate change caused both events, as the cooling and drying caused the land to become arid and turtles to become extinct there, while new continental margins opened up by the climate change provided habitats for other species to evolve. The cladogram, from Nicholas Crawford and colleagues 2015, shows the internal phylogeny of the Testudines down to the level of families. The analysis by Thompson and colleagues in 2021 supports the same structure down to the family level. The two groups differ in the way the neck is retracted for protection. Pleurodirans retract their neck to the side and in front of the shoulder girdles, whereas cryptodirans retract their neck backward into their shell. These motions are enabled by the morphology and arrangement of neck vertebrae. Sea turtles (which belong to Cryptodira) have mostly lost the ability to retract their heads. The adductor muscles in the lower jaw create a pulley-like system in both subgroups. However, the bones that the muscles articulate with differ. In Pleurodira, the pulley is formed with the pterygoid bones of the palate, but in Cryptodira the pulley is formed with the otic capsule. Both systems help to vertically redirect the adductor muscles and maintain a powerful bite. A further difference between the suborders is the attachment of the pelvis. In Cryptodira, the pelvis is free, linked to the shell only by ligaments. In Pleurodira, the pelvis is sutured, joined with bony connections, to the carapace and to the plastron, creating a pair of large columns of bone at the back end of the turtle, linking the two parts of the shell. == Distribution and habitat==

Turtles are widely distributed across the world's continents, oceans, and islands with terrestrial, fully aquatic, and semi-aquatic species. Sea turtles are mainly tropical and subtropical, but leatherbacks can be found in colder areas of the Atlantic and Pacific. The Cryptodira include terrestrial, freshwater, and marine species, and these range more widely. The world regions richest in non-marine turtle species are the Amazon basin, the Gulf of Mexico drainages of the United States, and parts of South and Southeast Asia. For turtles in colder climates, their distribution is limited by constraints on reproduction, which is reduced by long hibernations. North American species barely range above the southern Canadian border. Some turtles are found at high altitudes, for example, the species Terrapene ornata occurs up to in New Mexico. Conversely, the leatherback sea turtle can dive over . Species of the genus Gopherus can tolerate both below freezing and over in body temperature, though they are most active at . == Conservation ==

, harvesting for consumption, the pet trade, light pollution, and climate change. Asian species have a particularly high extinction risk, primarily due to their long-term unsustainable exploitation for food and medicine, and about 83% of Asia's non-marine turtle species are considered threatened. Turtle hatcheries can be set up when protection against flooding, erosion, predation, or heavy poaching is required. Chinese markets have sought to satisfy an increasing demand for turtle meat with farmed turtles. In 2007 it was estimated that over a thousand turtle farms operated in China. All the same, wild turtles continue to be caught and sent to market in large numbers, resulting in what conservationists have called "the Asian turtle crisis". In 2000, all the Asian box turtles were placed on the CITES list of endangered species. and there has been a growing demand for American turtles in China. However, the great majority of turtles exported from the US between 2002 and 2005 were farmed. Large numbers of sea turtles are accidentally killed in longlines, gillnets, and trawling nets as bycatch. A 2010 study suggested that over 8 million had been killed between 1990 and 2008; the Eastern Pacific and the Mediterranean were identified as among the areas worst affected. Since the 1980s, the United States has required all shrimp trawlers to fit their nets with turtle excluder devices that prevent turtles from being entangled in the net and drowning. More locally, other human activities are affecting marine turtles. In Australia, Queensland's shark culling program, which uses shark nets and drum lines, has killed over 5,000 turtles as bycatch between 1962 and 2015; including 719 loggerhead turtles and 33 hawksbill sea turtles, which are listed as critically endangered. Native turtle populations can also be threatened by invasive ones. The central North American red-eared slider turtle has been listed among the "world's worst invasive species", pet turtle having been released globally. They appear to compete with native turtle species in eastern and western North America, Europe, and Japan. ==Human uses ==

On space flights Two tortoises were on the Soviet Union's September 1968 Zond 5 circumlunar flight, making them the first earthly living things to travel to the vicinity of the Moon. Turtles were also on the Zond 6 (1968) and the Zond 7 (1969) circumlunar flights. In culture File:Kurmavatara (tortoise incarnation of Vishnu), from Garhwa, Allahabad District.jpg|alt=Photograph of temple sculpture in India|4th-century sculpture of turtle avatar of Vishnu. Garhwa, India File:PSM V10 D562 The hindoo earth.jpg|alt=Lithograph drawing of world resting on 4 elephants standing on a giant turtle|World resting on four elephants on the back of the World Turtle. Western depiction of "The Hindu Earth", 1877 File:Kangxi-Lugou-rebuilding-stele-3581.jpg|alt=Chinese funeral stone held up by a stone tortoise|Bixi supporting Kangxi Emperor's stele, Beijing, 1698 File:Alice par John Tenniel 34.png|alt=Children's book illustration with turtle figure standing on hind legs|The Mock Turtle in Lewis Carroll's 1865 ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' File:The Turtle 1898 Manhattan Theatre poster.jpg|alt=Painting of a turtle standing on hind legs, with top hat and cane, on theatre poster|Poster for 1898 production of The Turtle at the Manhattan Theatre, Broadway File:Terrapin Shell Leg Rattles Worn by Lead Woman Dancer, Oconaluftee Village, NC. - NARA - 281630.jpg|alt=Photograph of cloth with four terrapin shell rattles to be tied around a dancer's leg|Terrapin shell leg rattles worn by lead Cherokee woman dancer, 20th century Turtles have featured in human cultures across the world since ancient times. They are generally viewed positively despite not being "cuddly" or flashy; their association with the ancient times and old age have contributed to their endearing image. In Hindu mythology, the World Turtle, named Kurma or Kacchapa, supports four elephants on his back; they, in turn, carry the weight of the whole world on their backs. The turtle is one of the ten avatars or incarnations of the god Vishnu. The yoga pose Kurmasana is named for the avatar. World Turtles are found in Native American cultures including the Algonquian, Iroquois, and Lenape. They tell many versions of the creation story of Turtle Island. One version has Muskrat pile up earth on Turtle's back, creating the continent of North America. An Iroquois version has the pregnant Sky Woman fall through a hole in the sky between a tree's roots, where she is caught by birds who land her safely on Turtle's back; the Earth grows around her. The turtle here is altruistic, but the world is a heavy burden, and the turtle sometimes shakes itself to relieve the load, causing earthquakes. A turtle was the symbol of the Ancient Mesopotamian god Enki from the 3rd millennium BCE onward. An ancient Greek origin myth told that only the tortoise refused the invitation of the gods Zeus and Hera to their wedding, as it preferred to stay at home. Zeus then ordered it to carry its house with it, ever after. Another of their gods, Hermes, invented a seven-stringed lyre made with the shell of a tortoise. In the Shang dynasty Chinese practice of plastromancy, dating back to 1200 BCE, oracles were obtained by inscribing questions on turtle plastrons using the oldest known form of Chinese characters, burning the plastron, and interpreting the resulting cracks. Later, the turtle was one of the four sacred animals in Confucianism, while in the Han period, steles were mounted on top of stone turtles, later linked with Bixi, the turtle-shelled son of the Dragon King. Marine turtles feature significantly in Australian Aboriginal art. Lewis Carroll's 1865 ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland features a Mock Turtle, named for a soup meant to imitate the expensive soup made from real turtle meat. In 1896, the French playwright Léon Gandillot wrote a comedy in three acts named that was "a Parisian sensation" in its run in France, and came to the Manhattan Theatre, Broadway, New York, in 1898 as The Turtle''. A "cosmic turtle" and the island motif reappear in Gary Snyder's 1974 novel Turtle Island, and again in Terry Pratchett's Discworld series as Great A'Tuin, starting with the 1983 novel The Colour of Magic. It is supposedly of the species Chelys galactica, the galactic turtle, complete with four elephants on its back to support Discworld. A giant fire-breathing turtle called Gamera is the star of a series of Japanese monster movies in the kaiju genre and has had twelve films from 1965 to 2006. Turtles have been featured in comic books and animations such as the 1984 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. As pets Some turtles, particularly small terrestrial and freshwater species, are kept as pets. In the early 20th century, people in the United States have organized and gambled on turtle races. As food and other uses The flesh of captured wild turtles continues to be eaten in Asian cultures, while turtle soup was once a popular dish in English cuisine. Gopher tortoise stew has been popular with some groups in Florida. The supposed aphrodisiac or medicinal properties of turtle eggs created a large trade for them in Southeast Asia. A popular medicinal preparation based on herbs and turtle shells is guilinggao jelly. The substance tortoiseshell, usually from the hawksbill turtle, has been used for centuries to make jewelry, tools, and ornaments around the Western Pacific. The trading of tortoiseshell was internationally banned in 1977 by CITES. Some cultures have used turtle shells to make music: Native American shamans made them into ceremonial rattles, while Aztecs, Mayas, and Mixtecs made '''' drums. File:StateLibQld 2 395489 Catching turtles, wood engraving, 1875.jpg|Catching turtles in Australia, 1875|alt=Historic engraving of men catching turtles on a beach File:TurtleSeafood.jpg|Turtles on sale as food in Canada, 2007|alt=photo of turtles on sale as food in a shop File:Turtle plastrons as TCM in Xi'an market.jpg|Turtle plastrons for traditional Chinese medicine|alt=Photograph of a box of turtle plastrons in a market File:Peigne en écaille.jpg|A tortoiseshell comb; the material was expensive and decorative, and widely used for small items.|alt=Photograph of a decoratively ridged comb made of tortoiseshell File:Sheldonbasking.JPG|A pet red-eared slider basking on a floating platform under a sun lamp|alt=Photograph of a pet turtle in a terrarium File:Prohibited from capturing and consuming tutles, Bluefields, Nicaragua.jpg|A notice in Bluefields, Nicaragua in 2023 indicating that the capturing and consuming of turtles is prohibited ==See also==