Im easily aggravated

[antoniocormier]

Well on other social medias like keek and instagram i notice people tend to call tortoises turtles and turtles tortoises. I've gotta say IT AGGERVATES ME SO MUCH. Like you have no idea i just wanna fly to their house and backhand them. And then when they post pictures of their turtle in their house, they have the TURTLE in a TORTOISE enclosure and im just like "YOURE GONNA FLIPPING KILL THE ANIMAL. PLEASE DO YOUR RESEARCH BEFORE YOU BUY AN ANIMAL. AND PLEASE KNOW WHAT KIND OF ANIMAL YOU HAVE. " Ugh does it annoy anyone else?????

 

[Yvonne G]

RE: Im easily aggervated

Yes, it does, Antonio! We've discussed this before. The consensus of opinion is that we'll just have to learn to live with it.

The U.S. calls its chelonia by different names than, for instance, Australia does. In Australia water turtles are called tortoises.

So, calm yourself, and just get on with the enjoyment of watching and caring for your "turtles!!!!"

 

[Cowboy_Ken]

Recently I've been told that, “all tortoises are turtles, but not all turtles are tortoises" this “rule" makes some sense to me.

 

[abclements]

Tortoises are apart of the turtle family. So like cowboyken said, all torts are turtles but not all turtles are torts. Kinda like squares and rectangles lol

But yes i do agree that people that dont know how to properly care for their turtle/torts because they dont do enough research and dont know what they have...

 

[GeoTerraTestudo]

As mentioned above, it's not wrong to call tortoises "turtles," because they are a type of turtle. However, it is wrong to call box turtles "tortoises," because they are land-dwelling pond turtles, not tortoises. As Yvonne said, although Australians call their side-necked turtles "tortoises," that's okay as long as the relationships are clear.

Beyond the semantics of it, this can be a problem when the care of pets is compromised. If people are drowning their tortoises or drying out their aquatic turtles, then confusion becomes dangerous for the animals and should be corrected. Moreover, true tortoises are mostly or completely herbivorous, while other turtles are omnivorous or even carnivorous. Therefore, knowing what type of turtle you have informs not only moisture but also diet.

I call my own tortoises "turtles" all the time, because that's what they are, but I don't call boxies or other turtles "tortoises." And when I see people not caring for animals properly or mistreating them, I usually speak up in as constructive a manner as possible.

 

[Zabbi0]

Wow!!! I've actually had this wrong the whole time then.... I just thought tortoises were land and turtles were water....

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I know there are technicalities based on species but I thought primarily that was the distinction.

 

[GeoTerraTestudo]

Wow!!! I've actually had this wrong the whole time then.... I just thought tortoises were land and turtles were water....

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I know there are technicalities based on species but I thought primarily that was the distinction.

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Tortoises are the turtles that have been on land the longest (50 million years), so they are the most land-adapted. They have columnar legs like an elephant that give them the most efficient locomotion on land, and allow them to keep their belly completely off the ground. They are also the most adapted to feeding on land, eating mostly plants, and avoiding food in the water. Arid-land tortoises also pee uric acid, which allows them to hold onto more moisture in their body (like birds). All they need water for is drinking and bathing.

Some members of the pond turtle families have been on land less time, but still several million years. They move about well, but their legs are more splayed out sideways, and they don't fully clear their belly off the ground when they walk. They also pee urea, which is less water-efficient. However, they still retain the ability to swim and feed in the water.