Texas Tortoise

1 Overview

The Texas tortoise is a species of gopher tortoise that is uncommon in China. Because it is relatively difficult to keep, few hobbyists maintain it. Also called the Berlandier’s tortoise, it is small in size and feeds mainly on high-fiber plants.

The Texas tortoise (Gopherus berlandieri) is a member of the gopher tortoise genus. It ranges from Texas in the United States south into Coahuila, Nuevo Leon, and Tamaulipas in Mexico. The species name berlandieri honors Belgian naturalist Jean Louis Berlandier. It is the smallest of the four gopher tortoise species. It typically inhabits desert regions scattered with cacti and drought-tolerant plants, and is the least burrowing-prone of the gopher tortoises, either using other animals’ burrows or simply sheltering in shallow scrapes beneath shrubs.

Chinese name: Texas tortoise (Berlandier’s tortoise)

Common alias: Berlandier’s tortoise

English name: Texas Tortoise

Scientific name: Gopherus berlandieri

Distribution: United States, northwestern Mexico.

Reproduction: Lays 1-4 slightly elongated eggs between June and July.

Habits: Inhabits wasteland; burrows beneath trees or among dense root systems.

Physical traits: Maximum carapace length about 22.2 cm. The carapace is relatively rounded and short, with dark marginal scutes; the centers of the costal and vertebral scute growth rings carry lighter coloring. Two axillary scutes are present, and the third vertebral scute is the widest.

Diet: Herbivorous, feeding on flowers, leaves, and fruit.

Conservation: Listed under CITES Appendix II.

2 Physical Characteristics

The Texas tortoise has a distinctive look, a somewhat flattened tortoise, though not as flat as the pancake tortoise. It resembles a slightly flattened Egyptian tortoise. Its carapace lacks the high-contrast patterning of the Egyptian tortoise and is instead a fairly uniform dark yellow, with coloration varying by environment.

The Texas tortoise is the smallest of the four gopher tortoise species, typically inhabiting deserts dotted with cacti and drought-tolerant plants. It is also the least inclined to dig burrows among gopher tortoises, either using other animals’ abandoned burrows or resting in shallow scrapes beneath shrubs.

Like other gopher tortoises, it is closely tied to the specific environment and foods of its habitat, so keeping wild-caught individuals is difficult. In addition, they are highly susceptible to Mycoplasma-caused respiratory disease, which has a high mortality rate. Based on keeper experience, the symptoms of this infection are not obvious, usually just a gradual loss of appetite and reduced activity, progressing slowly and being hard to diagnose; the animal typically wastes away and dies within about 2-3 months. It is therefore best not to house them with other turtle species to avoid increasing the chance of infection.

3 Care & Husbandry

Gopher tortoises are very long-lived reptiles; their life cycle exceeds 60 years, and there are records of individuals living over a century in captivity. Females usually take 10-15 years to reach maturity and grow larger than males. Males develop more obvious sexual characteristics upon maturity, typically with a more protruding anal region and a clearly concave plastron.

4 Behavior & Habitat

When keeping Texas tortoises, a complex habitat must be set up, because in the wild they live in just such complex environments. Below is a description of how Texas tortoises live in their native range, and how we might observe them.

I. Texas Tortoise Distribution

The Texas tortoise (Gopherus berlandieri) ranges across southern Texas and into three Mexican states, Coahuila, Nuevo Leon, and Tamaulipas. It is also the smallest member of the gopher tortoise genus (Gopherus), with a maximum adult length of about 22 cm. It is currently listed as a CITES Appendix II protected tortoise. Compared with other gopher tortoises, the Texas tortoise spends less time hidden in burrows and is more often found under shrub cover; of course it does dig burrows, but it tends to use abandoned ones, so it is frequently found sharing a burrow with other creatures.

II. Texas Tortoise Habitat

The Texas tortoise inhabits dry mountainous oak or cedar forests and dry grasslands. Its habitat is generally dry, sandy soil, which makes nest-building easier. Texas tortoises dig or seek out suitably deep burrows to escape extreme temperature and humidity, because underground burrows effectively buffer abnormal outside weather and provide the conditions they need. Besides that, burrows are also excellent shelter, true of all gopher tortoises, and likewise of various North American mammals, birds, and other burrowing insects.

5 Feeding Requirements

In the wild, the Texas tortoise’s main food source is various plants, that is, it prefers foods that are both high in moisture and high in coarse fiber. In captivity, the following foods can be offered.

1. Aloe: These succulent plants are easy to grow. They keep branching, and each branch can be removed or cut to start a new plant. Simply place them in soil and they will grow. They resemble cacti but with softer spines and are easy to handle. They are perennial, with orange-yellow flowers that are beautiful in clusters. We keep eight varieties that bloom at different times; tortoises will eat the cut leaves and stems.

2. Spineless, fruit-bearing cactus: A medium-to-large plant. The cactus fruit (prickly pear) is rich in calcium and readily eaten. The fleshy pads can be planted directly into soil, bury about one third, preferably in sandy soil, but at least well-drained. Newly planted cactus should be fenced off until well rooted, otherwise the tortoises will not give it a chance to grow.

3. Yucca: The large leaves provide shade and are also very attractive. The best choice is a yucca with soft leaves. Yucca can be started from the crown; the best planting season is spring to early summer. Take some offshoots from the parent plant, strip the leaves from the rooted end, and bury them about 8-12 inches deep in well-drained soil.