Tortoises
Testudinidae
Tortoises (/ˈtɔːr.təs.ɪz/) are a family, Testudinidae, of land-dwelling reptiles in the order Testudines. Tortoises are shielded from predators by a shell. The top part of the shell is the carapace, the underside is the plastron, and the two are connected by the bridge. The carapace is fused to both the vertebrae and ribcage, and tortoises are unique among vertebrates in that the pectoral and pelvic girdles are inside the ribcage rather than outside. Tortoises can vary...
18 branches of this family, most-observed first · about 47 known species
Gopher and Desert Tortoises
genusGopherus
Mediterranean Tortoises
genusTestudo
Galápagos Giant Tortoises and Allies
genusChelonoidis
Stigmochelys
genusStigmochelys
Angulate Tortoises
genusChersina
Centrochelys
genusCentrochelys
Hinged Tortoises
genusKinixys
Aldabrachelys
genusAldabrachelys
Cape Tortoises
genusHomopus
Star Tortoises
genusGeochelone
Astrochelys
genusAstrochelys
Tent Tortoises
genusPsammobates
South Asian Tortoises
genusIndotestudo
Manouria
genusManouria
Spider Tortoises
genusPyxis
Malacochersus
genusMalacochersus
Padlopers
genusChersobius
Mascarene Giant Tortoises
genusCylindraspis
Where it lives
Recorded sightings
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geo-referenced records in GBIF, from museums, herbaria and field observers.
Drag the globe to turn it. Dots are where records exist, not a range map; darker means more records.
In the stacks
Searching the stacks…
Every page naming Testudinidae in the Biodiversity Heritage Library →
This page is assembled live from iNaturalist, GBIF, Wikipedia, the Source Library and the Internet Archive. It is not yet part of the hand-edited codex. iNaturalist taxon 40019.