Go slow and shell-e-brate!

Did you know that today (May 23) is World Turtle Day? World Turtle Day was founded in 1990 by American Tortoise Rescue to celebrate these magnificent reptiles and to raise awareness for turtle conservation to help protect the disappearing habitat of turtles, terrapins, and tortoises all over the world.

American Tortoise Rescue is a nonprofit that has rehomed over 4,000 sick, neglected, or abandoned turtles since their inception. Their message to the public is to never buy a turtle, only to adopt and that properly caring for turtles can be a big commitment.

Daniel is a big fan of turtles and loves to help turtles who are crossing the street make it safely to the other side and always in the direction they were already going – with adult supervision of course!

What else can we do to protect turtles? We can write letters to lawmakers asking them to preserve sensitive turtle habitats by protecting them from vehicles, and to prevent offshore drilling that threatens the lives of sea turtles!

If you want to help Daniel “shellebrate” World Turtle Day, you can visit this website to download a party pack of coloring pages and more!

Can you identify the types of turtles in the pictures on this page?

Email your answers to author@kidinakilt.com!