Living in a steel forest, modern people hate falling objects; and ancient people living in idyllic landscapes also had to worry about the sky above their heads-for example , a big tortoise suddenly fell and killed a person .
a hit turtle
Gaius Plinius Secundus, often called Pliny the Elder, in his book Natural History (published in AD 77-79), p. It is mentioned in Chapter 3 of Volume 10 that the ancient Greek tragic poet Aeschylus was killed by a tortoise thrown by an eagle flying in the air !
Is this record reliable? Let’s go back and forth with Sherlock Holmes, put on a magnifying glass, a peaked cap, a pipe, travel through time and space, and come to the coast of the Mediterranean Sea more than 2,400 years ago…
victim file
Let’s first look at the victim and the crime scene.
Aeschylus (525-456 BC), together with Sophocles and Euripides, is known as the greatest tragic poet of ancient Greece and is known as the “Father of Tragedy”.
Aeschylus last visited Gela in Sicily, Italy, in 458 BC, and was never able to return to his native Greece. He is most likely the first person to be killed by a turtle in human history.
The Greek Tragic Poet Aeschylus and the crime scene｜uh.edu
Murder weapon? Or Victim 2?
The second key “character” in this case – a turtle that fell from the world.
According to the “Natural History”, the turtle was thrown down by an eagle .
There is a story in Aesop’s Fables: A tortoise fell out of the air after asking the eagle to teach it how to fly. Of course, this is just a fable. The turtle who killed the ancient Greek poet was definitely not learning to fly when he stumbled in the air. It seems more logical that it becomes a certain eagle’s food and is taken into the air and then dropped .
In this way, a turtle who caused direct fatal injury to the victim in this case is actually a tragic victim. Here we call it Victim 2.
So what kind of turtle is this miserable turtle?
First of all, there are four main species of tortoises (Testudinidae) distributed in the European continent, namely the Hermann tortoise ( Testudo hermanni ), the European tortoise ( Testudo graeca ), the edged tortoise ( Testudo marginata ), the four-clawed tortoise ( Testudo horsfieldii ) ).
Among these four types of tortoises, except for the four-clawed tortoise, which is distributed in the northwest from Afghanistan to China, as well as in Russia, Azerbaijan, Turkey and other countries, the other three tortoises are distributed in the Mediterranean Sea . So we can narrow down the scope of Victim 2 to three:
Hermann tortoise
Hermann’s tortoises are distributed throughout southern Europe and are smaller than the average southern European tortoise, about 7-28 cm. The weight is about 3-4 kg . There isn’t much gossip about this tiny tortoise, but it appears to be one of the main characters in the famous fable “The Tortoise and the Hare”…
Left: Hermann’s tortoise; Right: Hermann’s tortoise distribution, red, green and blue represent the Balkans ( T. h. hercegovinensis ), the western ( T. h. hermanni ), and the eastern ( T. h. hermanni ), respectively. . h. boettgeri ) distribution of the three subspecies | zelf gefotografeerd/wikipedia
European tortoise
Since there are at least 20 subspecies of European tortoises, the size, weight and color of the tortoise shell vary greatly, and the range of habitats also covers the three continents of Europe, Asia, and Africa. One of the subspecies is also distributed in North America.
The smallest European tortoise is only 0.7 kg , and the maximum weight of 7 kg has also been reported. Tortoise shells range in color from dark brown to bright yellow, and markings may range from solid to variegated.
Figure 1 shows the distribution range of European tortoises; Figures 2-4 show the various subspecies and forms of European tortoises, of which Figure 3 shows the smallest, cutest and weakest subspecies of European tortoises – Tunisia Turtle ( Testudo graeca nabeulensis ), also known as the golden tortoise because of its bright yellow shell | wikipedia
European tortoises are often confused with Hermann’s tortoises, but upon closer inspection, there are some obvious differences in their morphology.
For example, European tortoises have large symmetrical markings on the top of their heads, larger front legs, each leg has a clear distance (nail-like structure), and European tortoises have black markings in the center of the abdominal carapace, The Hermann tortoise has two black borders.
European tortoises have become one of the most popular species in the European pet trade because of their small size, colorful shells and rich patterns. However, the large number of human captures has threatened their survival.
In version 2.3 of the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, the European tortoise is listed as a Vulnerable (VU) species, that is, it is about to become an endangered species . If the current living conditions do not change, this species will be in At risk of extinction in the wild. Fortunately, new regulations have been enacted to greatly reduce this trade.
Edged tortoise
The edged tortoise is found in Greece, Italy and the Balkans. It is the largest of the tortoises in Europe, reaching a maximum of 5 kg and a head of 35 cm in length.
The tortoise’s shell is rectangular, and the tortoise shell is noticeably thickened around the center (pictured to the right). The rear edge of the male tortoise is broad and flared, hence the name｜DeAbyDay
Compared with the altitude at which the Hermann tortoise is located, the habitat of the tortoise is mainly mountainous , and their traces can be found on the 1,600-meter high mountain. The dark shell of the tortoise can absorb enough heat in the sun for a short period of time, so that it can maintain its body temperature in the alpine environment.
Based on the clues we have, we can’t further judge which of the three turtles hit the tragic poet, but we believe that either kind of turtle hits the top of the head enough to make anyone bleed seven steps away.
Mastermind behind the scenes – “Bonebreaker”
At this point in the analysis of the case, it’s time for the black hand behind the scenes – an eagle who threw the tortoise and killed the tragic poet!
Was it manslaughter , which was dropped by mistake during the transport of the prey, or intentional murder , which was dropped on purpose? This issue is the crux of sentencing and must be addressed. So let’s get to know a bird of prey and its peculiar predatory behavior.
The mastermind behind the case: a certain eagle – the bearded vulture ( Gypaetus barbatus ). The bearded vulture is not actually an eagle . It belongs to the same family of eagles (Accipitridae) as eagles, but they belong to different subfamilies. Bearded vultures belong to the subfamily Aegypiinae , and the genus Gypaetus is the only species in the genus.
The bearded vulture and its present range, one of the largest birds of prey in Eurasia｜fr.vikidia.org
Unlike most vultures, the bearded vulture is not bald, with a taupe-brown downy feather on the forehead and top of the head, and a large-backed hairstyle. Its most eye-catching feature is the thick black “beard” from the eyes to the side of the mouth, which is also the origin of its name.
This large bird has a body length of 95-125 centimeters, and its slender wings are 2.75-3.08 meters long when fully opened. The bearded vulture’s habitat is distributed in some mountain ranges of 500-4000 meters above sea level in Asia, Africa and Europe, and it is also distributed near the Mediterranean Sea.
Like other vultures, the bearded vulture is a scavenger, 90% of its diet is bone marrow .
The large bearded vulture is powerful enough to swallow bones the size of a lamb’s femur, and its digestive system can quickly break down large pieces of bone. Some are too big to swallow, and clever bearded vultures smash the bones from the air into rocks , exposing the edible marrow inside. The bearded vulture is also nicknamed ” bone breaker” because of this peculiar habit.
Bearded vultures will grab the bones and fly into the air, throw them at the rocks, smash the bones and then eat the marrow｜cctv
Although they are accustomed to eating bone marrow, the bearded vultures occasionally change their tastes and break open a turtle to eat like the same method. Some unfortunate guys among the three types of tortoises in Europe mentioned above are “flyed” like this. Especially for chicks, it takes several years of hard work and hard work to master the unique skill of throwing bones in the air. But bones don’t come every day, so some poor tortoises are thrown from the air by bearded vultures.
there is only one truth
In fact, there are two other birds of prey in Europe that also have a history of eating turtles: the golden eagle ( Aquila chrysaetos ) and the white vulture ( Neophron percnopterus ). But considering that they are not repeat offenders of littering, and they are all smaller than the bearded vultures, it is a bit difficult to move the huge tortoises, so the suspect is still locked as the bearded vulture .
If the distribution range of the three species of tortoises and bearded vultures has not changed significantly from the ancient Greek period to the present, it can be inferred that the most likely to be caught by the bearded vultures in Sicily, and then fall on the head of the “tragic father” is the mountainous area . The edged tortoise , which is the largest and heaviest of all the tortoises introduced in this article…
Author: Benzi
Edit: small towel
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