### animal | vertebrate | reptile | turtle:

Tortoise
* All tortoises require ultraviolet lighting to maintain good health and shell structure.
* Many tortoises can retract their head, their four limbs and tail into the shell for protection
  - die as they wait for reintroduction to their native habitat
  - eat only living plants
  - have round hard walled eggs
* Most tortoises are located in islands
  - can lay hundreds of eggs at a time
* Most tortoises consume food
  - plenty
  - defend territory
  - depend on vegetation
* Most tortoises develop shells
  - thin shells
  - drink water
* Most tortoises eat cactus plants
  - good meals
  - prey
* Most tortoises excrete materials
  - extend necks
* Most tortoises fall into garden ponds
  - feed food
* Most tortoises feed on grass
  - shrubs
  - get food
  - grow throughout life
  - has-part stomachs
* Most tortoises have adequate shelter
  - backgrounds
  - chances
  - diets
  - digestive organs
  - dome shells
  - exoskeletons
  - flexible necks
  - front legs
  - hard shells
  - heads
  - high dome shells
  - hind legs
  - lifespans
  - ranges
  - round heads
  - strong legs
  - tails
  - thick shells
  - yellow backgrounds
  - live for years
* Most tortoises live in areas
  - burrows
  - sandy areas
  - on ground
* Most tortoises maintain constant temperature
* Most tortoises prefer dry habitats
  - sandy habitats
  - probably benefit from full-spectrum lighting
  - reach adulthood
  - rely on scent
* Most tortoises require diets
  - fiber diets
  - high fiber diets
  - retain shapes
  - show variation
  - survive years
  - thrive on food
* Most tortoises use burrows
  - claws
  - sharp claws
* Some tortoises apparently become fond of lettuce to the exclusion of other foods.
* Some tortoises are herbivores, and eat only plants
  - member of families
  - become pets
* Some tortoises carry capacity
  - diseases
  - come into contact
  - create environments
  - die of diseases
* Some tortoises dig pits
  - shallow pits
  - do battles
* Some tortoises eat fruit
  - grass hay
  - newts
* Some tortoises emerge from burrows
  - underground burrows
* Some tortoises engage in behavior
  - mate behavior
  - enter states
  - get sunshine
* Some tortoises grow into adults
  - healthy adults
* Some tortoises have ability
  - carapaces
  - characteristics
* Some tortoises have different food preference
  - enemies
  - home range size
  - homes
  - juice
  - many unique characteristics
  - shade areas
  - sides
  - specific areas
  - inflict injuries
  - inhabit savanna
* Some tortoises live even longer
  - in highlands
  - on islands
* Some tortoises occupy areas
  - dens
* Some tortoises reach maturity
  - receive vitamins
  - retain water
  - run about blindly
  - seek shades
  - show symptoms
* Some tortoises spread diseases
  - seeds
  - starve to death
* Some tortoises suffer from deformities
  - problems
  - survive for months
* Some tortoises take in excessive protein by eating caterpillars and snails
  - places
* adapt to environments.
* also produce urine and urates
  - vary from island to island
* appear to have a good sense of compass direction
  - colour vision, but colour vision is untested for most turtles
* are a type of turtle
  - actually easier to care for, but more expensive to own
  - aggressive but there is no evidence that they defend territories
  - animals
  - are turtles that live on land
  - cold-blooded, so the activity level depends on the surrounding temperature
* are extremely sensitive creatures
  - susceptible to colors
  - found mostly in Asia and Africa, while turtles are found in Africa and America
  - generally reclusive and shy creatures
  - herbivores, feeding on grasses and the leaves of shrubs and cacti
  - highly resourceful and determined creatures
  - popular attractions for ecotourists in some areas, most notably the Galapagos Islands
  - reptiles and their history can be traced back to million years ago
  - selective in choice of foods
  - shielded from predators by a shell
  - slow digesters
  - so rare they are protected
  - solitary roamers
  - strictly terrestrial with blunt, clubbed shaped feet suited for walking on land
  - subjected to predation by other animals, including by humans
* are terrestrial organisms
  - turtles having short, elephant-like feet with unwebbed toes
  - totally terrestrial
  - turtles who live on land and use water only for bathing and drinking
  - vegetarians
* breathe very slowly - they live long lives.
* can be long-lived pets if maintained properly
  - draw their heads and feet completely in under their shells when attacked
  - extract water and nutrients from even the most paltry bites
  - store water in the bladder, where it can be reabsorbed
  - take heart
* can vary in size from a few centimeters to two meters in length
  - few centimetres up to two metres in length
* change sleeping places occasionally in order to outwit any predators.
* depend on bushes for shade and protection from predators such as ravens and coyotes
  - water-rich grasses, plants, and flowers for food
* dig burrows
  - holes
* do move slowly.
* drink free water where it collects in pools near rocks or in depressions
  - dried annual plants and grasses from late spring through early fall
* enjoy munching on dried brown leaves and stalks as much as they do the fresh plant.
* exhibit behavior.
* go to water only to drink or bathe.
* grow at varying rates depending upon forage availability
* have a sweet tooth and love tomatoes, bannanas, apples, and baby cereal
  - an exoskeleton AND an endoskeleton
  - instincts, good ones, strong ones
  - several ways of communicating with each other
  - stubby, elephant-like feet and heavier, domed shells
* includes brains
  - breasts
  - cell membranes
  - cells
  - chest cavities
  - chests
  - corpi
  - cytoplasm
  - faces
  - nuclei
  - pedal extremities
  - plasma membranes
  - rib cages
  - sections
  - skulls
  - sterna
  - vacuoles
  - vertebrate feet
* inhabit regions
  - warm regions of all continents except Australia
* like to eat grapes and grape leaves
  - spend most of their time on land
* live almost exclusively on land
* live on ground
  - land and have stumpy feet to burrow with
  - only on land
* naturally occur on the lower slopes of mountain foothills, in fairly rocky terrain.
* need calcium
  - supplementary food
* occasionally eliminate a gray to whitish, chalky substance.
* occupy a wide variety of habitats in the United States
* often cross roads through undeveloped desert
  - dig burrows in the soft sand or dirt next to structures
  - stay inside a burrow for weeks at a time, especially when it is cold or dry
  - urinate after drinking or eating
* open mouths.
* really seem to like fruits.
* reproduce sexually.
* retract limbs.
* share burrows
* sometimes become disabled if they are overfed when they are young
  - suffer physical injury resulting in cracks or fractures in the shell
* stretch heads.
* vary in their interests in food.