| Turtles and tortoises are animals which are | | | | they will often be higher and more rounded. |
| distinguished by the hard shell they carry on their back | | | | 4. Feet |
| for protection. Although the terms are often used | | | | The feet of tortoises are also quite different from the |
| interchangeably, there actually are a few specific | | | | average turtle's. Most turtle feet look a bit like a flipper. |
| differences between a tortoise and a turtle. This article | | | | This is because they are designed to help the turtle |
| will break it down for you. | | | | swim through the water. Sea turtles, which spend |
| 1. Biological Classification | | | | almost no time on land, have highly specialized fins for |
| Basically, turtle is a more general term which describes | | | | this purpose. Tortoise feet, on the other hand, won't |
| all animals in the biological classification of Testudines. | | | | resemble a fin or flipper at all. They will usually be |
| Tortoises are a specific type of turtle (Testudinidae | | | | much rounder and stubbier. Looking at a turtle's feet is |
| family) mainly characterized by land-dwelling. All | | | | usually the quickest and easiest way to tell whether it |
| tortoises are turtles, but not all turtles are tortoises. | | | | is a tortoise and to tell how much time it spends in the |
| 2. Water Vs. Land | | | | water. |
| Tortoises are essentially land-dwelling turtles. Most | | | | 5. Cultural Differences |
| turtles love the water. Some turtles spend their entire | | | | There are also some differences in the way |
| lives in the water and only venture onto land to lay | | | | Americans and Britons refer to turtles and tortoises, |
| their eggs. An example of this is the Sea turtle. | | | | which can cause some confusion. Britons usually |
| Tortoises, on the other hand, don't generally live in the | | | | reserve the word turtle only for sea-water turtles. |
| water. They will only go to the water in order to drink. | | | | They call freshwater turtles "terrapins", and they call |
| Because of this, they usually have some unique | | | | land-dwelling turtles tortoises. Americans use the word |
| physical adaptations. | | | | turtle to describe all water-dwelling species and even |
| 3. Shells | | | | some land-dwelling species like the box-turtle. They |
| Most turtle shells are streamlined in order to be more | | | | reserve "tortoise" for the specific species included in |
| aerodynamic and good at cutting through the water. | | | | the Testudinidae family. |
| Tortoise shells don't need to serve this purpose, so | | | | |