Guebia

Odontochelys was fused with Odonto- (Greek odous, odontos) = “tooth” and -chelys (Greek) = “turtle”, and their species name semitestacea = “half-shelled” in Latin. The name literally means “half-shelled toothed turtle.”

Odontochelys possessed a fully formed plastron (bottom shell) but no fully formed carapace (top shell); instead, its ribs and gastralia (belly bones) were enlarged. They had little conical teeth in both jaws, unlike contemporary turtles. The head and neck had a longish neck and a skull that resembled a reptile. Their limbs are somewhat flexible, but they have paddle-like forelimbs and hindlimbs that are specialized for swimming. It appeared to be a half-shelled, toothed hybrid of a lizard and a marine turtle. It was relatively small, reaching a total length of about 40 cm (16 inches).

One of the earliest known stem turtles is Odontochelys. The theory that turtles descended from reptiles with characteristic skull openings is supported by their close kinship with Proganochelys, a later, fully shelled but still toothless turtle, and early reptile groups connected to diapsids. The evolutionary gap between real turtles and non-shelled reptiles is filled in part by Odontochelys. It existed in what is now China's Guizhou Province during the Late Triassic, around 220 million years ago.

Odontochelys used limb-powered paddling rather than the high-speed flapping of contemporary sea turtles, and it was probably able to dive shallowly, maneuver amid rocks and seafloor detritus, and swim competently, especially in calm coastal waters. Odontochelys was not designed for long-distance ocean migration. Similar to a scuba diver's weight belt, its heavy plastron probably served as ballast, keeping it underwater while it foraged on the seafloor. Odontochelys was a frequent and repetitive diver, according to isotope studies and bone pathology (particularly avascular necrosis or "the bends").

In Rapunzel's universe, the opponent gets drenched when the turtle shoots a tiny stream of water out of its mouth.

Odontochelys was mostly aquatic and most likely lived along the shore or in lagoons. Although it was once believed to be an omnivore, new carbon isotope research indicates that Odontochelys was a nearshore herbivore that probably grazed on macrophytic algae, similar to contemporary marine iguanas or green sea turtles. Their primary predators are larger marine reptiles, such as early ichthyosaurs and nothosaurs, and they belong to the trophic level of small to mid-level grazers. Odontochelys appears from its belly-first armor that the main threats were from below. A robust belly is crucial for life since predators like ichthyosaurs and huge predatory fish would have attacked from the water column.

Reproduction

• Almost certainly egg-laying (oviparous), like all turtles.

• This proto-turtle was likely came ashore or used sandy shallows to nest.

• Their eggs were probably had leathery shells, similar to modern reptiles.

• No evidence of parental care beyond nesting.

Odontochelys was probably shy and protective rather than aggressive, and it was either solitary or sporadically sociable. Rather than engaging in combat, this proto-turtle relied primarily on avoidance, hiding in silt, and seeking refuge in shallow water. Because it lacks the sophisticated social brain necessary for "friendship," Odontochelys would consider humans to be either neutral elements of the environment or possible predators. However, Odontochelys' bite would feel more like a "pinch" than the shearing "snip" of a contemporary snapping turtle because it lacked a beak.

Did not go extinct in a single event, but as part of early turtle evolution.

Their primary causes:

• Environmental changes in the Late Triassic.

• Competition from more advanced turtles with full shells.

• Predation pressure from nothosaurs.

• Its lineage evolved into more fully armored forms rather than disappearing suddenly—it didn’t fail; it evolved.

Fossils of Odontochelys were found in southern China and possibly nearby countries. Because they were a part of the ancient Tethys Ocean ecosystem, their primary ancient environments were shallow marine waters, coastal lagoons, and estuaries. The climate was warm and tropical to subtropical.

• Movement Pattern: Not Migrant

• Individual Type: Solo

• Population Trend: Stable

• Population: 0

• Locomotion: Amphibious

• Habitat: Salt Flats; Tropical Coniferous Forests; Tropical Moist Broadleaf Forests; Tropical Dry Broadleaf Forests; Tropical Grasslands, Savannas and Shrublands; Mediterranean Forests, Woodlands, and Scrub; Flooded Grasslands and Savannas; Swamp; Bayous/Billabongs; Riparian; Wetland; Mangrove Forest; Warm River; Cold River; Lukewarm River; Warm Pond; Cold Pond; Warm Lake; Cold Lake; Warm Littoral; Cold Littoral; Warm Intertidal; Cold Intertidal; Kelp Forest; Coral Reef; Barrier Reef; Guyot; Neritic Zone (Warm); Warm Ghost Town; Cold Ghost Town; Ruined Skyscraper.

• Earth: 

  • Extinct: China (mainland); Mongolia; Nepal; Vietnam

All turtles are automatically tamed when hatched from an egg, as the survivor is always within 20 radius of the sac hatching. If the tortoise is somehow not tamed at birth, it can be tamed with a whip, any plant materials, buds, jellyfishes, seaweeds, or eggshells.

TBA

2022 Renders

• TBA

• TBA

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Odontochelys

• https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q131325

• https://www.biolib.cz/en/taxon/id776949/

• https://www.gbif.org/species/4965047

• https://www.irmng.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=1475926

• https://tree.opentreeoflife.org/taxonomy/browse?id=3606462

• https://www.researchgate.net/publication/23501107_Ancestral_turtle_from_the_Late_Triassic_of_Southwestern_China

• https://www.deviantart.com/ognimdo2002/art/Odontochelys-semitestacea-920860203

• https://www.deviantart.com/ognimdo2002/art/Odontochelys-semitestacea-2024-1098500310