Travancore Tortoise

1 Overview

The Travancore Tortoise (Indotestudo travancorica) closely resembles the Burmese tortoise in appearance. Some say it is a subspecies of the Burmese tortoise, but this has never been clearly confirmed. Its habits are also very similar to the Burmese tortoise, and it favors a dry living environment.

Chinese name: Travancore Tortoise

English name: Travancore Tortoise

Binomial name: Indotestudo travancorica

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata

Subphylum: Vertebrata

Class: Reptilia

Order: Testudines

Family: Testudinidae

Genus: Indotestudo

Species: Travancore Tortoise

Distribution: Coastal mountain ranges from western to southwestern India (the states of Karnataka and Kerala).

Appearance: Adults reach about 25 cm; the Travancore Tortoise resembles the Sulawesi tortoise in appearance.

Behavior: It seems to favor high-temperature daytime activity. Summer runs roughly March–May with daytime averages of 30–35°C, occasionally up to 40°C; June–September is the rainy season; November–February is winter. Essentially, except in the highlands, it is warm and dry year-round.

Reproduction: Oviparous.

Diet: In the wild it eats mostly grasses, then wild fruits, and occasionally some mushrooms.

2 Physical Characteristics

The Travancore Tortoise was once considered the same species as the Indian tortoise, and the two look similar, with carapace patterns also resembling the Burmese tortoise—both bearing clearly bounded black blotches.

Early descriptions placed the Travancore Tortoise of southwestern India under the same scientific name as the Sulawesi tortoise of Indonesian islands, Indotestudo forstenii, but it was later determined to be a distinct tortoise and formally named Indotestudo travancorica. The Travancore Tortoise is mainly distributed across two districts of the Western and Eastern Ghats of southwestern India—Karnataka and Kerala. Its habitat ranges from coastal shrubland at sea level to evergreen mountain forest up to 450 m. It is densely found in the Thrissur region of Kerala and the capital region of Travancore, after which it is named.

The main way to distinguish the Travancore Tortoise from the Sulawesi tortoise is the nuchal scute: the Sulawesi essentially lacks one, while the Travancore has one. Other distinctions require reference to tortoise morphometric records. In principle the two look much alike. Almost all Travancore Tortoises have a nuchal scute; otherwise they resemble the Burmese tortoise but lack black blotches on the belly. During the breeding season the skin around their ears and eyes turns pink. They are very shy and inactive.

3 Care & Husbandry

The Travancore Tortoise is relatively rare. Its habitat and husbandry are simple, and if it could be bred in quantity it would make an easy entry-level tortoise; but it is not yet mass-bred, so numbers remain small.

Compared with the Sulawesi tortoise or the Burmese tortoise, the Travancore’s habitat seems drier, with average humidity around 60–70%. The annual daytime temperature range is 27–33°C. It seems to favor high-temperature daytime activity. Summer runs roughly March–May with daytime averages of 30–35°C, occasionally up to 40°C; June–September is the rainy season; November–February is winter. Essentially, except in the highlands, it is warm and dry year-round.

Although its habitat is mainly dry forest, biologists’ fixed-point surveys found a small high-altitude population, confirming it also adapts well to cool highland climates. Husbandry can therefore follow the yellow-headed tortoise’s approach. Feed should mainly be coarse-fiber grasses, supplemented with a small amount of fruit.

4 Natural Habitat

Like most tortoises, temperature and light are essential principles in keeping the Travancore Tortoise—temperature ensures health, and basking supplies calcium. So how should temperature be controlled, and what are the lighting principles?

1. Temperature

The Travancore Tortoise likes warmth and fears cold, and is especially sensitive to temperature change. Temperature affects not only metabolic rate but also feeding and foraging frequency, so daily husbandry should emphasize temperature control. When the temperature is 19–30°C, feeding can proceed normally; at seasonal transitions, follow the principle of ‘less rather than more’ when feeding. If the temperature suddenly drops after daytime feeding, warm promptly, or digestive upset and gastrointestinal disease may result.

2. Basking

Daily sunbathing is essential, but note that more than half an hour in full sun easily causes fatal dehydration, so provide a water sprayer to replenish moisture (keep sunbathing under half an hour).

3. Hibernation

Before hibernation, examine the tortoise’s droppings, appetite, and condition; unhealthy individuals must not hibernate. Use a heater to keep the environment at about 22–25°C, feed normally, and treat with medication. Place healthy tortoises indoors facing south, add sand to the enclosure, and cover with a cotton pad; keep the environment at about 10°C for natural hibernation.

5 Feeding & Husbandry

Food selection for the Travancore Tortoise is simple. In its native range it eats whatever plants are available and appears unfussy—a habit that makes captive care easy, and unfussy tortoises start feeding more readily.

Newly acquired tortoises generally do not feed voluntarily and need a taming period before seeking food. First, prepare a properly sized carton or wooden box in a low-traffic area to adjust to the new environment, and observe droppings. Then, when the ambient temperature is 20–30°C, place food in front of its mouth each day—bananas, cucumbers, or tomatoes work best, since bananas and cucumbers are fragrant and tomatoes are red, easily luring it to eat, and most Travancore Tortoises favor these. If the temperature drops below 20°C, warm the enclosure or let it hibernate (for healthy individuals). For tortoises refusing food for a week, use force-feeding: hold it upright, pull the head out, pry the mouth open with forceps, place food such as cucumber inside, then set it down to swallow on its own; if it will not, push the food deep into the esophagus with forceps, keeping the first feeding small. Tortoises with gastrointestinal disease should be treated by intramuscular injection.

The Travancore Tortoise’s feed is simple—plant matter such as melons, fruits, and vegetables, plus small insects and lean meat. Feed must be washed and disinfected before use to avoid pesticide and harmful residue. Generally feed once daily, in an amount the tortoise can finish. In early spring and late autumn, when temperatures are unstable, feed every 2 days; even if it has an appetite, feed little or not at all.