turtle shell: bee3o’oubee-t = ‘it has a hard/stiff blanket’
Snapping Turtle (Chelydra serpentina)
Painted Turtle (Chrysemys picta)
Western Box Turtle (Terrapene ornata).
The same word is used for ‘fog.’ When there was foggy weather, the Arapaho would draw a figure of a turtle on soft ground and then beat it with a stick. They believed that "killing" the turtle would make the fog go away. They also believed that the turtle controlled clouds and rain more generally.
The turtle dived to the bottom of the waters to bring up the first earth. Images of the turtle are very important in the Sun Dance.
Alfred Kroeber reports that turtle heart was pounded and drunk in water as a remedy for heart trouble.
Turtle tails were used as personal medicine, according to Kroeber. In two cases, the hard scales of the tail were said to give invulnerability in battle or represent good health. In another case, since the turtle controls fog and clouds, the turtle tail was worn as protection against dangerous (thunder) clouds.