Happy World Turtle Day!!!

Today is all about those shell-tered reptiles, turtles! This day was created as a yearly observance to help people celebrate and protect turtles and tortoises and their disappearing habitats around the world.

Although they are all called turtles and are part of the order Testudines, there are other species referred to as tortoises, which are characterized by their hard, dome-like carapaces, are heavier and more robust, and all terrestrial, while typical turtles are smaller, lighter, thinner, and more water-dynamic shells that help with their swimming. Contrary to popular beliefs, all Testudines don’t wear their shells. The carapace is fused with the vertebrae and ribs while the plastron is formed from bones of the shoulder girdle, sternum, and gastralia (abdominal ribs). Of course, these species are slow-moving animals due to their shells. Turtles and tortoises are famously known for living long lives, with giant tortoises living the longest. The oldest living turtle and land animal is said to be a Seychelles giant tortoise named Jonathan, who turned 187 in 2019. Turtles and tortoises have been made known in human cultures across the world, generally viewed in a positive light. The most well-known example is the World Turtle. According to Hindu mythology, the World Turtle, Kurma or Kacchapa, supports four elephants on his back; they, in turn, carry the weight of the whole world on their backs. World Turtles are found in Native American cultures including the Algonquian, Iroquois, and Lenape, telling many versions of the creation story of Turtle Island. Some Native Americans and Indigenous rights activists would call North America Turtle Island. Turtles and tortoises are widely kept as pets. However, they have been hunted for their meat, for use in traditional medicine, and for their shells. Sea turtles are often killed accidentally as bycatch in fishing nets. Testudine habitats around the world are being destroyed. As a result of these pressures, many species are extinct or threatened with extinction. To prevent this, American Tortoise Rescue, a nonprofit organization established in 1990 for the protection of all species of tortoise and turtle, sponsors World Turtle Day on May 23. A study on the effects of biodiversity awareness days listed World Turtle Day as an example of how they increase the internet search traffic on the protected species. It is promoted by dressing up as turtles, wearing green summer dresses, saving turtles caught on highways, research activities, and adopting turtles or tortoises from rehabilitation centers.

In My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, there have been a lot of Testudines. These include tortoises and sea turtles. The most well-known is Rainbow Dash’s pet tortoise, Tank. When trying to find the right pet for her, Rainbow at first preferred an animal that could be very much like her, fast-flying and awesome. Tank was nothing like that, but he proved to be loyal and a true-blue friend during a race. In the end, he became Rainbow’s pet. Unfortunately, because most of Equestria’s reptiles are cold-blooded, Tank can only survive the winter by hibernating, much to Rainbow Dash’s sadness. Nevertheless, Tank will always be a true friend to the fastest Wonderbolt in Equestria.

Outside of Equestria, there are Turtlefolk, with some living alongside Lizardfolk, Fishmen, and other strange sapient creatures in the dangerous desert port city of Klugetown. One example is the town’s Barrel Vendor, a big snapping turtle with a snappy personality. Unlike the Testudines of Equestria, he is NOT friendly. He doesn’t like it when others so much as use magic on his cargo. And like the rest of his fellow Klugetowners, he even tried to buy the Mane Six until Abyssinian Capper Dapperpaws tricked the towners into thinking the ponies were infected with a fictional disease, scaring them away.

The largest turtle in all of Equestria is a huge tortoise-like creature named Mr. Tortoise-Snap, perhaps a sort of terrestrial Asipodochelone. Like all tortoises, he’s an herbivore. But due to his gigantic girth, he feeds on trees. The Mane Six tried to stop him from eating Applejack’s apple orchard, only for Princesses Celestia and Luna to cause him to disappear. Pinkie Pie later recruited Tortoise-Snap to clean some garbage in Canterlot after the street sweepers went on strike.

In My Little Pony: Equestria Girls, Human Rainbow Dash also owns a tortoise named Tank and with a similar personality. He played a part in escorting sea turtle hatchlings to the sea after they hatched from their eggs. Human Fluttershy cares for another tortoise among her animal charges. Whether in the Pony World or the Human World, turtles and tortoises of all shapes and sizes are beloved and must be protected. Their shells can protect them from predators, but not from everything else.

Last year, I learned about this sometime before May, and I got started on it days after the month began. In a word, like the tortoise in The Tortoise and the Hare, I took my time working on this and made it. Since I already had a vector of both Tank and the Klugetowner Turtle Vendor, I felt like they served as the perfect excuse to make a pic for the occasion. However, I knew there were more Testudines than them. If your recall the green sea turtle from my Endangered Species Day project, I made him for this project before then. I included the other tortoise since it appeared occasionally, mostly in Equestria Girls. Mr. Tortoise-Snap was literally the biggest and toughest to work on. Their sizes aren’t 100% accurate. If I made them accurate, Tank and the natural turtles would be really small compared to the Barrel Vendor, and Tortoise-Snap would be WAY TOO BIG to fit. I don’t know if you can tell, but the background is based on the pattern from turtle shells. I believe it really fits.

#worldturtleday #turtleday