We get to play soccer and have sleepovers. 34 WBM march 2014 What’s in a name? A brief bit of background regard-ing the words terrapin, tortoise, and turtle might be helpful. To begin, turtles are reptiles, as are crocodiles, lizards and snakes. The group of animals we call turtles is scientifi-cally called Chelonia; a Greek-derived word referring to the turtle’s protec-tive shell, its shield of armor. All tortoises and terrapins are turtles, just as the various species of so-named sea turtles are more cor-rectly called turtles; as in loggerhead turtles, green turtles, or leatherback turtles, while tortoise is the name for a terrestrial turtle, most with high-domed shells, and thick, unwebbed hands and feet. In North America, the name terrapin is applied only to the diamondback terrapin, a strictly brackish, meaning mixed fresh and salt water, turtle in the family Emydidae. Some reptile book authors vari-ously claim the word terrapin means little turtle, little edible turtle and little edible saltmarsh turtle. In Britain, small freshwater turtles are called terrapins, and they give credit for the word to the Native American Algonquian people. Terrapins resemble their common freshwater cousins. Found in lakes, neighborhood ponds, large streams and rivers, terrapin cousins, or pond turtles, go by the nicknames slider or cooter, including yellow-bellied slider and Florida river cooter. Sliders and cooters are also referred to as bask-ing turtles, owing to their habit of hauling out onto logs and shorelines to lounge and warm in the sun, a behavior indigenous to terrapins as well. The diamondback moniker is a reference to the prominent, nearly concentric ridges formed on the turtle’s carapace, or top shell, especially on middle-aged individuals. The ridges form a diamond-like shape, giving the turtle the distinct, beautiful markings for which it is known. Maddie Dowell and Maddie Picken might have Type 1 Diabetes, but it doesn’t slow them down a bit. With support from the team at New Hanover Regional Medical Center Nunnelee Pediatric Specialty Clinic, they can focus on having all the fun they can pack into a day. www.nhrmc.org Women’s & Children’s Care. Recognized for Excellence. NHRMCW&CMaddies_WBM_0314.indd 1 2/5/14 2:54 PM
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