50 Shell-tacular Fascinating Facts about Turtles just for kids!

Turtles and Tortoises are amazing creatures that can be found on every continent and every ocean, except Antarctica! Despite popular belief, most turtles and tortoises can not pull their heads, arms, and legs into their shells. Read on to find out more amazing facts about Turtles!

Learning about facts is not only fun but also incredibly worth it! Facts are a great way to learn new words and even animal names. Facts also make learning an adventure; plus, knowing facts helps children engage in conversations, share interesting tidbits with friends, and become mini-experts in all things. 

Facts about Turtles

1. After a baby hatches, they are on their own to survive. No species of turtles nurture their young.
2. Turtles do not have teeth. They use their jaws to break up food.
3. They have inner ear bones that send vibrations, just like ours!
4. There are seven species of water turtles. 
5. There are 365 species of turtles and tortoises worldwide. 

6. Turtles are adapted to live in the water with paddle-like front legs and webbed back feet to help swim. 
7. Leatherback turtles do not have hard shells. Their shells are made from a rubber-like material so that when they dive deep under the water their shell does not shatter from the pressure. 
8. The Leatherback Sea Turtle is the largest turtle in the world! They grow up to 6 feet long and weigh 2,000 pounds. 
9. Turtles have ears! 
10. June 16th is World Sea Turtle Day!

11. Sea turtles can hold their breath for 5 hours!
12. Sea Turtles can also dive up to 960 feet below the water’s surface. 
13. Female sea turtles return to the beach where they were born to lay their own eggs. This is called “Homing”. Scientists have no idea how they do this!
14. Sea Turtles migrate for thousands of miles every year.
15. Since Sea Turtles consume salt water, they release the excess salt through their eyes. 

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16. Seat Turtles eat jellyfish, which helps keep the ecosystem balanced. 
17. Some Sea Turtles can weigh 2,000 pounds! 
18. If you see a Sea Turtle hanging out on the beach, it is just warming itself up since it is cold-blooded. Their environment regulates their temperature. 
19. The Hawkbill Sea Turtle has a mouth shaped like the bill of a bird. 
20. The Flatback Sea Turtle can only be found in Australia.

21. Unlike other species, the Flatback Sea Turtle has a very short migration along the Australian coast. 
22. Baby Sea Turtles are called Hatchlings. 
23. It has been discovered that if the sand in which the eggs are laid is warm, there will be more female babies. If the sand is cold, most babies will be male. 
24. Due to warming global temperatures, more female babies are being born. This causes an imbalance in the male-to-female ratios.
25. Hatchlings are only around 3 inches in length.

26. The shell of a Sea Turtle is actually 50 bones fused together. 
27. The shell is also made of two parts: the top shell called the Carapace and the bottle shell, called the Plastron. 
28. Jonathan, the oldest living tortoise, is 189 years old! 
29. The Softshell Turtle, found in North America, is carnivorous and aggressive toward their prey.
30. The Chinese Softshell Turtle is a delicacy and is made into soup. 

31. Turtles enjoy a good nap and will sleep underwater.
32. In Hawaii, the Honu Turtle is considered good luck.
33. Leatherback Sea Turtles are the world’s fastest reptile. 
34. The Fly River Turtle is also called the Pig-nosed turtle due to its snout-like nose. 
35. Did you know that all tortoises are turtles, but not all turtles are tortoises? Tortoises only live on land, while Turtles live in water but come on land to lay their eggs. 

36. Turtles can live to be over 100 years old.
37. Tortoises can live to be over 200 years old.
38. A group of turtles is called a Bale.
39. A turtle’s shell grows with them throughout their lives. 
40. Turtles eat both plants and meat, which means they are omnivores.

41. Turtles have lived on the Earth for millions of years. 
42. The shell of a turtle is part of its bone structure and contains its spine and rib cage. 
43. The bones that make up the shell are covered in skin called Scutes.
44. Those Scutes can be replaced throughout their lifetime. 
45. The Female Sea Turtle lays hundreds of eggs at one time, but will only lay eggs once every 2-3 years. 

46. It takes about 60 days, or two months, for a baby Hatchling to emerge from its shell.
47. Hatchlings are born with a special tooth to help break through its shell.
48. All seven of the Sea Turtle species are on the endangered species list.
49. Tortoises (Land Turtles) dig burrows to lay in their eggs. 
50. Turtles do not have vocal cords so they hiss to communicate.

Do you know any other turtle facts? Be sure to leave them in the comments so we can add them to our list!