Habitat destruction, illegal collection, water contamination, and massive harvesting of wild turtles are decimating the world’s turtle population. Learn more about turtles and tortoises at the ...

The "cosmic turtle", which holds countries or even the entire world on its back, appears in creation myths across the globe. In Hindu mythology, the World Turtle, known as Akupara, Kurma ...

Likewise, among indigenous peoples in North America, the world was thought to have been created on a turtle’s back. 'Characterized by its distinctive body form and slow motion, the tortoise is ...