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TORTOISE

SANCTUARY WILDLIFE

TORTOISE

Gopherus morafkai

  • Habitat: Desert and semi-desert grasslands
  • Status: Threatened
  • Population Trend: Decreasing
  • Diet: These reptiles are primarily herbivores, and eat grasses, weeds, wildflowers, and leaves. In the Sonoran Desert, they also eat cactus pads and the fruit from various cacti. Occasionally, a tortoise may even eat bone material scavenged from mammal scat as a means of obtaining calcium
  • Weight: 8 - 15 lbs.
  • Size: 3.9" - 5.9" tall; 9.8" - 14" long
  • Lifespan: 50 - 80 years
  • Wild population in Arizona: ~100,000
  • In the Southwest Wildlife Sanctuary: 8
  • Interesting Facts:
    • A common way tortoises defend themselves is to empty their bladder - urinate - if they are picked up or handled. This could lead to their death if they can't find water soon thereafter.
    • Sonoran Desert Tortoises’ predators include; ravens, gila monsters, kit foxes, badgers, roadrunners and coyotes. They prey on the juveniles, which are 2 to 3 inches long and have thin, delicate shells. Mountain lions may occasionally take adult tortoises.
    • You should never return a captive tortoise to the wild because they might not survive (and it is illegal). If you already have a tortoise and can't keep it, try to find someone else to take care of it. If you can't find anyone then give it to an adoption program.

Centrochelys sulcata

  • Habitat: Deserts and semi-arid regions of North Africa. They are found commonly in grasslands, deserts, savannas, and thorn scrubland
  • Status: Endangered
  • Population Trend: Decreasing
  • Diet: These reptiles are herbivores and eat grasses, weeds, wildflowers, and leaves
  • Weight: Females can weigh 80 - 130 lbs. Males are larger at 150 - 200 lbs.
  • Size: Around 15" tall; 24" - 30" wide; 25" - 30" long
  • Lifespan: 50 - 150 years
  • Wild population in Arizona: Unspecified
  • In the Southwest Wildlife Sanctuary: 1
  • Interesting Facts:
    • When a sulcata tortoise gets thirsty, they can drink up to 15% of their body weight in water!
    • The name “sulcata” is a Latin word for “furrow,” which is found on the tortoise’s back between each scute.
    • These reptiles find relief from the desert heat by digging burrows up to 10 feet deep.

THE SOUTHWEST WILDLIFE TORTOISES

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