Turtles 101

Turtle Anatomy

Most Aquatic Turtles can't eat out of water. They need water present to swallow their food as they can't chew it.
Their tongues are used to help them swallow but they cannot stick them out.
Turtles have a great sense of smell and color vision which they use to seek out their food.
Turtles regularly shed their skin and also shed their scutes which come off in waxpaper-like pieces.
They have an ear called the Tympanum Membrane, although you can't see it.
Some turtles can hibernate but some from warmer regions cannot.
Every turtle lays their eggs on land.
The turtle's shell is built into its skeleton, it cannot come out of its shell.
The easiest way to tell if a turtle is aquatic is to look at its feet and see if there is webbing between its toes.
Turtles do have to come to the surface to breathe. They do not have gills or anything that allows them to breathe underwater.
Turtles intake water through their nostrils to pick up the scent of possible food.
Although normally peaceful, turtles can become violent towards each other if they are not given proper space where they are housed or if there is not enough food being fed to them.
Turtles are not short lived animals. They can live to be over 20 years old easily and some can live to be up to 100 years old.