Chelonian anatomy Last major update of this page was in early 1996. I am not satisfied with the content. Please accept my apology. The backbone of the turtle is partly coalescent with the shell.
Most species are able to hide the whole head, limbs and tail.
The upper part of the shell is called the carapace, the lower part the plastron. To find out the sex of hatchlings is a little bit hard. The male is nearly always smaller than a female. Exceptional are only the largest terrestial species, like giant tortoises .