Turtles and tortoises, both shelled reptiles, are often confused. The key difference lies in their habitat: turtles mostly live in water, while tortoises are land-dwellers. This impacts their shell shape – turtles have flatter shells for swimming, tortoises have domed shells for protection and righting themselves. Their legs and feet also differ, with turtles having webbed feet or flippers and tortoises having round feet. While tortoises are usually herbivores, turtles are often omnivores, though exceptions exist in both groups. Both are found worldwide, except tortoises are absent from Australia and Antarctica.

Prepared by Olivia Bennett and reviewed by editorial team.