Question about turtles
 

Alrighty, I feel dumb, but this question has been bugging me for a while.

In Return of Nano when April's staying with them, she comments that she didn't know turtles had teeth.

Um....real turtles don't really have teeth, right? Or do they?

No, turtles do not, in fact, have teeth. They use their sharp beaks to tear food into pieces and then they swallow those pieces whole.

However, in the TMNT universe, the reason for them having teeth could be logically explained by the fact that they are humanoid turtles, and the mutation process gave them human-like teeth.

Think of it this way... before Hamato Yoshi was transformed into Splinter, he didn't have sharp rat claws and rat teeth, but now, as Splinter, he does.

Since the turtles were mutated into humanoids after being in contact with a human (Yoshi), they obtained some of the human traits, such as human-like teeth.

EDIT: Another thing to keep in mind is that, even though the TMNT are turtles, they look more like frogs with shells. You'll notice, in most incarnations, that the TMNT's faces, feet, hands, and skin look more like they belong to a frog than to a turtle. Turtles have scales and generally have sharp claws on their hands and feet.

On a related note... the Battletoads look more like iguanas than toads.

But thinking in terms of OS cartoon won't help here, Neo, because a lot of stuff in there was simplified for the kids at the time to understand.

There had to be some human DNA strands in the ooze the Utroms made. They created it to help them find a way home, but also to blend into human society better. It explains a lot of the human physical characteristics the guys have, such as human teeth. There are just too many facts here to ignore that.

Turtles are toothless. They have serrated beaks. To feed, they will bite off chunks and swallow-water turtles can only swallow with water, they can't eat out of the water. My wood turtles bite, hold with their hands and pull to get bites. Then there's the two basic beak designs...water turtles have the hook on the lowerr jaw when tortoises and snappers are hooked on the upper jaw. Ok I'll shut up now.

A TMNT's face shape is nothing like a turtle but you figure, they were guessing what they would look like mutated. Turtles do have cheeks but not cute funny ones like TMNT's; what we never see on a TMNT are their ears-yes turtles have ears you just have to look for them; and their nostrils. How do they breathe!!

And for the record, a tmnt shouldn't be able to breathe like they do in the toons, with the chest moving...their shells are immobile, so a turtle uses other means for respiration. Their throat muscles for one and inside their bodies, their guts move pumping in and out air. They don't have a diaphragm like we do to breathe.

Sounds like that mutagen just turned the poor creatures into horrible freaks--moreso than previously thought, anyway.

Haven't seen that episode, but... WTF?? Hasn't she noticed before they had teeth? :-?

I'm sorry, but I just HAVE to ask... is your signature from that Britney Spear's song?

I really liked how the old toon handled the mutation of Yoshi and the turtles, because personaaly I thought it made better sence (a little far fetched but what ever) with the turtles mutating into humnoid mutants because of their contact with a normal human (Yoshi).

I think that is why the turtles don't have beaks or flippers. It is almost like because of their contact with a human the mutagent took the human dna and transfigured theminto something as biologically close to humn as thier anphibean bodies would allow it.

Maybe that is why their faces are smoothed out to the point that they don't have beaks and their faces are more rounded and vaguely humanoid, and why they have hands and fingers instead of flippers or claws. And it isn't just physical apearance that they have with human s they also have have human intellgence that the mutagent got the dna from Yoshi and transfered into the turtles.

I mean compared to Slash the other mutant turtle who didn't have a human host to pattern its dna after when he mutated looks more turtlish with a more turtle face, complete with beak and claws and low intellgence to boot. Because it is clear that Slash does not have human intellgence. In fact he is more in touch with his primitive side than the turtles are.

*groans* Again, the OS explanation is bogus. I'm not flaming the OS, but there are some things in there, such as their "explanations", that leave much to be desired. I'm mean, come on, I'm seven years at the time then when I was watching it, and that made no sense to me at all. I believed there was something else, and I think I was happy when I saw the first movie that I was right.

What's in the comic is the true explanation, and the new series reflects that. Understand?

The reason the old toon explanation is so wierd is because it's "Whatever it was in conact with last", well sence the Turtles got humanoid, wouldn't Yoshi have bacame turtle like?

:ohwell:

Look I'm not saying that the comic book version didn't make sence it just that it made better sence that the turtles became humanoid turtles because of some sort of contact with a human and thus became that way. I know the whole thing comes apart with the whole splinter thing, I was just saying that it made since that they would become human like because of contact with a human, instead of just becoming human like because of getting mutgent on them instead of just over sized freaky turtles that where still turtles none the less.

Man, I knew I was going to get this sort of reaction when I said that something from the old toon made a little sence to me, jesus!

@the battletoad note: i say they look like frogs perfectly =/

Turtles Don't but they can actually eat Pizza.

You don't FEED a turtle PIZZA!!!!!!!!!!

they dont even like the stuff. Jeesh...
your posts are unneccisary.

*blinks* I thought you feed them lettuce and stuff. Certainly not pizza....

Wow, Turtles can actually eat Pizza and lettuce. What about frozen beer or potatoes? Fact is, turtles could theoretically eat anything softer than a rock, if they do eat anything softer than a rock is questionable. Including pizza.

Maybe your turtle just nibbles on the pizza and then doesn't like it and turns over to the yummy lettuce.

Science is boundless. With the right components and mixtures of chemicals, the results can be extraordinary. The Utroms had no idea what they formulated could result in creating four hybrid turtles, and a rat. They weren't aware the components contained such altering properties.

The simple skin contact with the last thing to touch explained in OS has more holes than a slice of swiss cheese. At all reasons, Yoshi should have turned into a turtle, not a rat.

Not true. Yoshi touchs the turtles, yoshi then touchs a rat, then the ooze falls on them. Turtles = Human, Yoshi = Rat.

While the OS plot may have more holes in it, I enjoyed it more than the new one. The most thoroughly overwrought explanation for something isn't always the most entertaining one. I, like many others, enjoy TMNT for the entertainment value of it, not for it's scientific accuracy.

I've always rationalized what happened with Splinter in the OS with the idea that maybe he turned into a rat because he spent more time with the rats than he spent with the turtles, so his DNA was more attuned to the rats' DNA than the turtles' DNA.

Granted, they never go into very thorough explanations of it in the OS, but perhaps you shouldn't read so much into it anyway. After all, it involves 4 mutated turtles who practice ninjutsu and scarf down pizzas; it may not be the most reliable medium for scientific reasoning and basis, if you know what I mean. :P