Mbe (Tortoise)
Mbe the Tortoise is the cunning trickster of Igbo folklore, a small creature who uses his intelligence to overcome larger, stronger animals — and often his own greed leads to his downfall. In the most famous Igbo story, Mbe was once a bird with a beautiful shell who borrowed feathers to fly to a heavenly feast. Through trickery (claiming his name was "All of You"), he ate all the food. The angry birds retrieved their feathers, leaving Mbe stranded in heaven. He convinced the heavenly hosts to throw him down, but his shell shattered on impact — which is why tortoises have cracked, patched shell