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See text The order Testudines includes both extant (living) and extinct species. The earliest known turtles date from 215 million years ago,[1] making turtles one of the oldest reptile groups and a more ancient group than lizards and snakes. About 300 species are alive today, and some are highly endangered. Like other reptiles, turtles are ectotherms — varying their internal temperature according to the ambient environment, commonly called cold-blooded. Like other amniotes (reptiles, dinosaurs, birds, and mammals), they breathe air and do not lay eggs underwater, although many species live in or around water. The largest turtles are aquatic. The largest chelonian is the great leatherback sea turtle, which reaches a shell length of 200&_160;cm (80&_160;inches) and can reach a weight of over 900&_160;kg (2,000&_160;lb, or 1 short ton). Freshwater turtles are generally smaller, but with the largest species, the Asian softshell turtle Pelochelys cantorii, a few individuals have been reported up to 200&_160;cm or 80&_160;in (Das, 1991). This dwarfs even the better-known Alligator Snapping Turtle, the largest chelonian in North America, which attains a shell length of up to 80&_160;cm (31½&_160;in) and a weight of about 60&_160;kg (170&_160;lb).
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