Colophon

The animal on the cover of Maintainable JavaScript is a Greek tortoise.

Greek tortoises (Testudo graeca), also known as spur-thighed tortoises, are currently divided into at least 20 known subspecies, and as such vary greatly in size, weight, and color. They inhabit areas of North Africa, southern Europe, and southwest Asia, where they tend to prefer hot, arid regions; however, they can also be found on mountain steppes and seashore dunes. Their genetic richness makes their classification difficult and results largely from their crossbreeding; tortoises from different groups often mate, resulting in offspring of widely varying colors and sizes. For this reason, one of the best ways to identify a particular specimen is to know where it came from.