Reptile under water/surviving//turtle

reptile,reptile underwater,surving
Turtles
Temporal range:
Upper Triassic – present
220 mya to present

Florida box turtle (Terrapene carolina)
Scientific classification.

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Clade: Perichelydia
Order: Testudines
Batsch 1788
Subgroups
Cryptodira
Pleurodira
†Meiolaniidae

##Although many turtles spend much of their lives underwater, all turtles and tortoises breathe air, and must surface at regular intervals to refill their lungs. Some spend their whole lives on dry land.
Aquatic respiration in Australian freshwater turtles is being studied. Some species have large cloacal cavities that are lined with many finger-like projections. These projections, called papillae, have a rich blood supply, and increase the surface area. The turtles can take up dissolved oxygen from the water using these papillae, in much the same way that fish use gills to respire.
Like other reptiles, turtles lay eggs which are slightly soft and leathery. The eggs of the largest species are spherical, while the eggs of the rest are elongated. Sea turtles lay their eggs on dry, sandy beaches. Turtles can take many years to reach breeding age, and in many cases breed every few years rather than annually.