A. Wild desert tortoises in the Mojave Desert are protected under the Endangered Species Act and state law. Dead or alive they are not to be touched, collected, or disturbed in any way. However, if you find a wild tortoise on a busy road through the desert, you may help it across the road.
Tortoises carry salmonella on their shells. This is the main part of the animal that most people will be in contact with. One of the ways tortoises spread salmonella, even if you never touch your tortoise at all, is through excrement.
Desert tortoises may live 50 or more years in the wild and even longer in captivity.
A male tortoise has a longer gular horn than a female, his plastron (lower shell) is concave compared to a female tortoise. Males have larger tails than females do. Their shells are high-domed, and greenish-tan to dark brown in color.
There's no real way of determining a tortoise's age, other than through record keeping. Contrary to some old wives tales, the growth rings around scutes are not a gauge for age.
In nature, tortoises tend to be solitary. Never house two male tortoises together. And avoid keeping only one female and one male together so the male does not become overly aggressive. Keeping two or more female tortoises together is generally fine, and keeping one male with two or more females can also work.
A desert tortoise may be legally possessed in California only under the authority of a permit issued by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. The department may issue a permit for the possession of a desert tortoise provided the tortoise was legally acquired.
Desert tortoise are able to burrow to escape heat. They can store water in their bladder, and are able to tolerate high levels of urea in their blood to keep from losing moisture through excess urinating. They can go for long periods of time without food or water.
Cats and birds can damage/kill tortoises up to about three years in age. Rodents may chew on tortoise shells or limbs. Children that pick up tortoises may drop them, which may crack their shells. If not, look at the plastron of the animal.
Basic VegetablesUse leafy greens such as spinach and cabbage along with peas, green beans, carrots, sweet potatoes and bell peppers. Most hard vegetables are acceptable as tortoises like the crunch factor as they chew.
Burrows also protect the tortoises from predators. Coyotes and kit foxes prey on adult tortoises. Badgers, skunks, ground squirrels, ravens, Gila monsters, and roadrunners can prey on juvenile tortoises and tortoise eggs.
A turtle's predators depend on its species as well as its location. Common predators for the painted turtle and other land turtles include skunks, raccoons, gulls, foxes, ravens, weasels, crows, herons and other turtles, such as the snapping turtle, while sea turtle predators include killer whales and sharks.
Anything less than 50 °F (10 °C) is too cold for a desert tortoise, except during hibernation, when the low temperature will need to be closely monitored and regulated.
Desert tortoises have been kept as pets in Arizona for many decades. It is not surprising that so many people find this endearing desert denizen so appealing. Tortoises are highly personable and often appear to interact with people and other animals around them.
This does take time, but turtles and tortoises are very smart. They will learn your scent, sounds, and behaviors. They will come to associate you with food and safety.
It is more terrestrial than the turtle is, going to water only to drink or bathe. Tortoises do not have bodies designed for swimming. They do not have webbed feet, rather their feet are round and stumpy for walking on land, and they are not able to swim.
It is against the law to kill, harass or destroy gopher tortoises, their eggs or burrows.
Since they are so big, they usually can avoid predation, as well. Wee hatchlings, however, are easy targets for some mammalian predators, including skunks, armadillos, foxes and raccoons. Snakes, birds and alligators are also all predators of gopher tortoise youngsters.
Today, the greatest threat to the survival of the gopher tortoise is habitat destruction. Tortoises can not live if they do not have undeveloped land with plenty of food and room to dig their burrows. Another less obvious threat that is related to development is land fragmentation.
Gopher tortoises cannot swim well and can easily drown. Officials say gopher tortoises often nest in dunes near sea turtle nesting beaches, leading to the confusion.
Gopher tortoises are docile creatures and don't bite back to protect themselves. Typically, tortoises will pull their head into their shell and use their front legs as a shield.
Gopher tortoises graze on a variety of native and nonnative plants, including broadleaf grasses, wiregrass, prickly pear grass, wild grape, blackberry, blueberry, and many more.
Both the tortoise and its burrow are protected under state law. Gopher tortoises must be relocated before any land clearing or development takes place, and property owners must obtain permits from the FWC before capturing and relocating tortoises.
First, because gopher tortoises are protected, it is illegal for you to keep, move, or even feed the tortoise. The best thing to do is take it back where you found it and let it go out of harm's way. Tortoises, like the majority of reptiles, do not take care of their young, so no adult tortoise will be looking.
Tortoises kept overnight in green houses are at particular risk. Once the sun comes up, the temperature within a green house rises very quickly, and will far exceed the outdoor temperature. A tortoise can overheat and perish in minutes.
By counting the number of rings on the shell of a tortoise you can guess it's approximate age.
Your tortoise will get a lot of its water from its food, so you may not see it drink frequently. However, tortoises enjoy soaking occasionally so the water dish should be just a few inches deep, and wide enough for the tortoise to sit in.
Excessive fruits (other than the "cactus apple" from Opuntia cactus in season) should not be fed as they may upset digestive flora and can result in overgrowth of intestinal parasites. NO banana at all, especially to hatchlings as they can choke. DO NOT feed soy, tofu nor ANY animal protein such as cat or dog food.
Landfills and other waste disposal facilities potentially affect desert tortoises and their habitat through fragmentation and permanent loss of habitat, spread of garbage, introduction of toxic chemicals, increased road kill of tortoises on access roads, and increased predator populations.
Desert tortoises are found in the wild in the Sonoran Desert and it is illegal to take one from its natural habitat and keep it as a pet. Despite this, they have become desirable as pets and some people illegally breed them, Wolf said.
