Gopher Tortoise

1 Overview

The Gopher Tortoise is a typical land turtle, a committed vegetarian, though in captivity it may eat some meat; in the wild, because of its small population, it is listed as a protected animal.

Also called the Florida Gopher Tortoise, distributed in the southeastern United States. Its habitat includes Atlantic coastal sands, cypress forests, sand ridges and dunes, and longleaf-pine swamps; the substrate is mostly sandy and very dry. It is herbivorous, eating grass and fruit. It is good at digging burrows 11–15 m deep. Wild individuals live over 40 years.

Chinese name: Gopher Tortoise

English name: Gopher tortoise

Scientific name: Gopherus polyphemus

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata

Subphylum: Vertebrata

Class: Reptilia

Order: Testudines

Suborder: Cryptodira

Family: Testudinidae

Species: Gopher Tortoise

Distribution: Southeastern United States

Diet: Herbivorous, eating grass and fruit

Habits: Lives in well-drained sandy areas near woodland; often hides in deep burrows it digs.

Breeding: Nesting season May–June, 1–25 eggs per clutch, incubation about 80–100 days; sex determined by incubation temperature, above 30°C yields females, below 30°C yields males.

2 Physical Characteristics

Its appearance is similar to most land turtles; as a hatchling the carapace color and pattern resemble the sulcata, but the adult changes greatly, the carapace not vivid, rather plain.

Adult shell length 10–25 cm; hatchlings 3–5 cm, max 38 cm. The distance between the bases of the first and third claws on the front foot equals that between the first and fourth claws on the hind foot.

Plastron slightly yellow; the adult’s gular scute extends well beyond the carapace. The head is large, front blunt, brown-gray; the iris is dark brown. Hind legs smaller than front. As a hatchling the color resembles the sulcata, but as an adult it darkens and is unremarkable.

Hind legs short and stout, front legs covered with scales, flattened for digging; no webbing between toes. Carapace rounded and elongated, black-brown or black-gray, brown to tan; plastron single yellow, central scute often lighter. Bridge well developed; usually one axillary scute.

3 Care Guidelines

Keeping the Gopher Tortoise is common, even in China many keep it. It gets sick easily and hibernates within a certain temperature range. Care points follow.

1. Reproduction

Newborn tortoises have a flat plastron until about 8 in (20 cm) long (10–15 years wild; 5–10 years captive), when males develop a clearly concave plastron and females stay flat. Males also have longer gular horns, longer tails, and larger chin glands.

Shortly after waking from hibernation, males follow females; males fight each other, and to avoid being flipped, may need separating. Between May and July females carefully choose a nesting spot and lay a clutch of 2–12 ping-pong-sized eggs. She may dig several holes; occasionally more than one clutch per season.

2. Health protection

Land turtles easily catch respiratory disease, such as ‘upper respiratory tract disease,’ which has reduced wild populations in California and Nevada to a tenth. Symptoms: nasal discharge or bubbles, loss of appetite, wheezing. Respiratory disease is usually curable if treated promptly. Swollen eyes, injury, or other harm should see a vet immediately. Sick or injured tortoises should be moved indoors away from flies; they may also get parasitic disease, with weight loss and unexplained lethargy as clues.

3. Does it hibernate?

Usually from late October as it turns cold, the Gopher Tortoise becomes lazy, eats less, basks less. Provide a suitable hibernation spot. Some keepers use a dog house with a thick layer of dry soil, leaves, and shredded newspaper for insulation. Cover the entrance with a tarp against rain and flooding.

4 Behavior & Habitat

Breeding of the Gopher Tortoise has stabilized; many places hatch captive-bred individuals, good for its keeping. How to set up the artificial environment follows.

1. Adult enclosure

For health and vitality, keep adults outdoors in a large space; provide shade from sun and cold, and a hiding place at night. Adults need wide space to move and walk; ideally the whole yard is their space. Ensure fencing prevents escape and the pond is fenced. Remove any toxic plants; no pesticides or chemical fertilizers inside. Drilling holes in the shell or tying ropes to legs is cruel and inhumane.

2. Hatchling care

A large glass aquarium suits newly hatched young, enough room to move and tall enough to prevent falls. Newspaper, paper towel, rabbit or guinea-pig pellets, poor dry soil, or garden soil can line the bottom; keep it clean whatever you use. Provide a hiding box for sleeping; do not keep with adults, or they may be hurt.

3. Hatchling temperature

Hatchlings do best at 75–90°F (24–32°C) by day, dropping to 70–75°F (21–23°C) at night; create this gradient with a heating pad under one end, none at the other. Tank temperature depends on size and room temperature. Use a thermometer. A full-spectrum bulb like Vitalite provides some sunlight components and must be turned off at night.

5 Feeding Requirements

Its habitat includes Atlantic coastal sands, cypress forests, sand ridges and dunes, and longleaf-pine swamps, mostly sandy and very dry. So plants that store lots of water are a good choice.

1. Wild food

Wild Gopher Tortoises are herbivorous, eating grass and fruit, occasionally carrion and dung. They have extreme environmental demands; to escape abnormal weather they evolved strong front legs for digging burrows 11–15 m deep, providing a very stable environment with stable temperature and humidity.

They absorb water from food and can live in extreme drought, enduring long periods with little eating, drinking, or excretion; among land turtles they have the best bladder water storage.

2. What to feed in captivity

Healthy tortoises have huge appetites. Grass shoots, pasture, dandelion, alfalfa, prickly pear cactus, rose and hibiscus flowers are excellent. Also offer vegetables like chicory, escarole, broccoli, crushed squash, sliced carrots, mixed greens, a little kale, romaine and other dark leafy greens.

Adding rabbit or guinea-pig feed boosts dietary fiber; they need much calcium, so occasionally add calcium carbonate or offer calcium-rich foods like eggshell or cuttlebone. Occasionally add appropriate vitamins; provide a dish of water for soaking and drinking.

3. What hatchlings eat

Because chicks have small mouths, offer several times daily a variety of properly sized foods. Feed hatchlings a mix of grass, flowers, and leafy greens: dandelion, grass, hibiscus and rose flowers, alfalfa, cactus, chicory, escarole, alfalfa, kale, spinach, broccoli, romaine; avoid lettuce, which is too low in nutrition.