Other members of the family Testudinidae are generally small (7–35 cm (2.8–13.8 in) long). C. atlas is the largest known member of the family, with a shell length of about 2.1 m (6.9 ft), an estimated total length of 2.5 to 2.7 m (8.2 to 8.9 ft), and an approximate total height of 1.8 m (5.9 ft). Weight estimates vary greatly: some go as high as 3 to 4 metric tonnes (3000 to 4000 kg), but a weight of around 1 mt (1000 kg) is probably more realistic.[4] The only larger turtles were the oceanic Archelon and Protostega from the Cretaceous period, and the aquatic Stupendemys of the South American late Miocene. In life, C. atlas would have resembled a giant Galápagos tortoise.
| Attributes | Values |
|---|
| rdfs:label
| |
| rdfs:comment
| - Other members of the family Testudinidae are generally small (7–35 cm (2.8–13.8 in) long). C. atlas is the largest known member of the family, with a shell length of about 2.1 m (6.9 ft), an estimated total length of 2.5 to 2.7 m (8.2 to 8.9 ft), and an approximate total height of 1.8 m (5.9 ft). Weight estimates vary greatly: some go as high as 3 to 4 metric tonnes (3000 to 4000 kg), but a weight of around 1 mt (1000 kg) is probably more realistic.[4] The only larger turtles were the oceanic Archelon and Protostega from the Cretaceous period, and the aquatic Stupendemys of the South American late Miocene. In life, C. atlas would have resembled a giant Galápagos tortoise.
|
| dcterms:subject
| |
| abstract
| - Other members of the family Testudinidae are generally small (7–35 cm (2.8–13.8 in) long). C. atlas is the largest known member of the family, with a shell length of about 2.1 m (6.9 ft), an estimated total length of 2.5 to 2.7 m (8.2 to 8.9 ft), and an approximate total height of 1.8 m (5.9 ft). Weight estimates vary greatly: some go as high as 3 to 4 metric tonnes (3000 to 4000 kg), but a weight of around 1 mt (1000 kg) is probably more realistic.[4] The only larger turtles were the oceanic Archelon and Protostega from the Cretaceous period, and the aquatic Stupendemys of the South American late Miocene. In life, C. atlas would have resembled a giant Galápagos tortoise. Like the modern Galápagos tortoise, C. atlas's weight was supported by four elephantine feet. Since most members of the related genus Testudo are herbivores, paleontologists presume C. atlas had the same diet. When a predator threatened it, C. atlas could probably retract its limbs and head into its shell, like its modern relatives.
|