The female
A shorter tail and a flat plastron: two clues to consider together.
The Little Guardians workshop
Curious eyes.
Creative hands.
The best discoveries begin with a tiny detail. Look at our illustrated tortoises, then invent your own.
With an adultTake your timeNo sign-up
Let’s spot the differences ↓I would rather draw →
01 / Look and discover
Male or female?
Follow the clues.
Here we meet adult Hermann’s tortoises, shown as little drawings. Do not guess by colour: look at the tail and the plastron, the underside of the shell.
Our journey: 1. Five drawings · 2. Five real photographs, with an adult. Drawing and the gallery will be waiting for you afterwards.
The male
A longer tail and a concave plastron, which curves slightly inwards towards the body.
Look at the drawings — do not turn tortoises over! In real life, these clues are not always enough, especially in young animals. Let’s leave them in peace.
Ready to look closely?
Five little discoveries.
One drawing at a time. If your answer is not quite right, a clue will help you try again. There are no grades or timers here.
Which clues can you spot?
Look at the tail and the side view of the plastron. In this drawing, can you see…
Level 1 complete · five discoveries
You have the keen eyes of a Little Guardian!
You have looked, tried and learnt. Now for a new challenge: five real photographs, one at a time.
Continue with an adult. Photos are more complicated than drawings: when the clues are not visible, you can choose “This photo does not show enough”.
We are staying here in the workshop. No name, email address or sign-up needed.
Level 2 · real tortoises
Let’s look together, one detail at a time.
With an adult, look only at the pictures. Do not turn tortoises over or move them to copy these poses. The clues refer to the animals in our archive: they cannot confirm the sex of another animal.
What can this photo tell us?
Follow the clues with your adult. If you cannot see enough, saying so is a good observation too!
Loading the photograph…
A fresh way of seeing nature!
Every detail you notice is a little step forward. Even pausing to say “I cannot see enough” shows respect for animals. This is not an exam: what matters is your curiosity.
For adults who would like to learn more: read the photographic guide. This is optional reading: you do not need to open it to finish the game. Leaving or reloading this page will lose your game and any unsaved drawing.
For adults: what does this activity teach?
This is a simplified comparison, not a tool for identifying an animal. The underside views are explanatory drawings, not invitations to handle tortoises. Five correct answers, with hints if needed, complete the illustrated level. Next come five photographs, with one answer per picture and an explanation. The drawings use simplified shapes: they cannot replace specialist observation.
Reference: Merck Veterinary Manual, female/male comparison by Stephen Divers. Simplified vector illustrations created for this workshop, not photographs.
02 / Your little art studio
One tortoise.
All your colours.
Colour in an outline or start with a blank page. Add a meadow, a leaf, a world to care for. Here, the colours are up to your imagination!
MY WORLD TO CARE FOR
Your drawing stays in this page’s memory. Save it before closing: it is not sent to or stored by the website.
Your finger draws only on the page; use the space at the sides to scroll. The eraser removes your colours but leaves the outline.
A signature, a little story
Your drawing
in an exhibition?
The idea is to create a space for drawings selected by the Foundation, without rankings or competitions. Each work could have a simple signature, such as Marco (Treviso).
Submitting a real drawing will require the involvement of someone with parental responsibility. No drawing will go online automatically.
See the proposed gallery →For adults to try · invented details only
A first name or nickname only — no surname, age, school or address. You can leave out the town or use a wider area. For this preview, make up a signature.
Shows the drawing currently on the page. It does not submit an entry, save the fields or publish anything.