Pleurodira
The smaller and less diverse of the two suborders of Chelonidae, Pleurodires are found only in the southern hemisphere in both HE and DW. They are called side-necked (or sideneck) turtles, because in order to hide its head in its shell, the turtle must fold its neck to one side, instead of withdrawing it directly under its spine as in Cryptodira. Usually they also have longer necks, often meaning they make efficient low-level browsers.
Family: Chelidae
Subfamily: Chelonidae
Genus: Megachelonis
Megatortoises
The largest of all terrestrial tortoises, the Megatortoises comprise of several species found across Australasia. In the absence of any true competitors for the low-browser and grazer herbivore niches other than a few Poposuchids and the usual scattering of bats, birds and avicephalids. This has allowed them to grow into some truly huge forms, bigger than even the Giant Tortoises of our time.
Slashcoffer Tortoise (Acutatesta Pastus)
A middling sized Megatortoise, Slashcoffers are by far the most common. Found in Australia, they take up most of grazing niches. There are several subspecies, distributed amongst the different types of grasslands. Most are found in Eastern Australia, due to the high proportion of grassland though some are found on the outskirts of the Great Central Desert and the northern rainforests. Relatively well adapted to eating grass, they have developed heavily specialised beaks. The front part is razor sharp and sheared, capable of cutting through the tougher stems and mincing the grass into small pieces. The back half closely resembles the chewing battery possessed by hadrosaurs such as Edmontosaurus and is capableof breaking the tough grass into something digestable. Like all grazers, they have to eat near constantly. Slow-moving creatures, they travel in vast herds for protection, reliant on numbers and their viciously spiked shells for defence. At night, they dig themselves 'barrows' in the soil to lie in. Their spikes dig embed into the side of these barrows, and a sleeping herd practically becomes a living minefield of hard spikes that few predators dare enter. Even the mightiest Australian hunter, the Frumious Bandersnatch is loathe to enter rest
Family: Chelidae
Subfamily: Chelonidae
Genus: Megachelonis
Megatortoises
The largest of all terrestrial tortoises, the Megatortoises comprise of several species found across Australasia. In the absence of any true competitors for the low-browser and grazer herbivore niches other than a few Poposuchids and the usual scattering of bats, birds and avicephalids. This has allowed them to grow into some truly huge forms, bigger than even the Giant Tortoises of our time.
Slashcoffer Tortoise (Acutatesta Pastus)
A middling sized Megatortoise, Slashcoffers are by far the most common. Found in Australia, they take up most of grazing niches. There are several subspecies, distributed amongst the different types of grasslands. Most are found in Eastern Australia, due to the high proportion of grassland though some are found on the outskirts of the Great Central Desert and the northern rainforests. Relatively well adapted to eating grass, they have developed heavily specialised beaks. The front part is razor sharp and sheared, capable of cutting through the tougher stems and mincing the grass into small pieces. The back half closely resembles the chewing battery possessed by hadrosaurs such as Edmontosaurus and is capableof breaking the tough grass into something digestable. Like all grazers, they have to eat near constantly. Slow-moving creatures, they travel in vast herds for protection, reliant on numbers and their viciously spiked shells for defence. At night, they dig themselves 'barrows' in the soil to lie in. Their spikes dig embed into the side of these barrows, and a sleeping herd practically becomes a living minefield of hard spikes that few predators dare enter. Even the mightiest Australian hunter, the Frumious Bandersnatch is loathe to enter rest