i found a tortoise that was on the road and being the type of person that i am, i took the tortoise home. i plan to take care of the tortoise but how do i go about doing it?i dont know what kind of species is it but the tortoise has a black shell. how do i make a habitat for it? and what kinds of food should i feed it? Ummm... torts need big habitats... because they normally get big. Consult your local herp store/expert. Find out if it's a native animal or not. I do not reccomend keeping wild animals. They'll only end up dyeing in captivity with amature care. On the other hand if it was a pet congrats put the tort in your will for your kids cuz it's gonna be around for some time.
This thing will eat a ton of veggies more than likely. I got one in the store right now that eats 4 dishes of food per day. The dish is the same size as him. Try lettus... but not ice burg. As for habbitat... roughly where did you find this lil guy? Look at the area*excluding the road and human created junk* and try to mimic what you see there in an enclosure. Don't use a fish bowl as suggested by someone else here @_@. Tortoise eats vegetables, thats what you should feed it. For other uses, see Tortoise (disambiguation).
How to read a taxobox
Tortoises
Aldabra Giant Tortoise(Geochelone gigantea)from Aldabra atoll in the Seychelles.
Aldabra Giant Tortoise
(Geochelone gigantea)
from Aldabra atoll in the Seychelles.
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Testudines
Suborder: Cryptodira
Superfamily: Testudinoidea
Family: Testudinidae
Genera
Chersina
Cylindraspis(extinct)
Dipsochelys
Furculachelys
Geochelone
Gopherus
Homopus
Indotestudo
Kinixys
Malacochersus
Manouria
Psammobates
Pyxis
Testudo
A tortoise is a land-dwelling reptile of the order Testudines.
Like their aquatic cousins, the turtles, tortoises are shielded from predators by a shell. The top part of the shell is the carapace, the underside is the plastron, and the two are connected by the bridge. The tortoise has both an endoskeleton and an exoskeleton. Tortoises can vary in size from a few centimetres to two meters. Most land tortoises are herbivorous in the wild. The carapace can help indicate the age of the tortoise by the number of concentric rings, much like the cross-section of a tree. Males tend to have a longer, protruding neck plate than their female counterparts.
Tortoises tend to be diurnal animals with tendencies to be crepuscular depending on the ambient temperatures. They are generally reclusive and shy.
Most land based tortoises are herbivores, feeding on grazing grasses, weeds, leafy greens, flowers, and certain fruits. Their main diet consists of alfalfa, clover, dandelions, and leafy weeds.
Female tortoises dig and lay about a dozen eggs in burrows or holes they dig. Hatchlings take approximately 90-120 days to incubate from ping-pong-ball sized eggs. The hatchlings break out of their shells with a front beak. Most hatchlings are born with an embryonic egg sac, serving as a source of food for the first couple of days. They are capable of eating solid food in about 3-7 days.
The giant tortoises of the Gal谩pagos Islands helped Charles Darwin formulate his theory of evolution, since the isolated populations on the different islands, although descended from a common ancestor, had diverged to different forms.
The first turtles already existed in the era of the dinosaurs, some 300 million years ago. Turtles and tortoises are the only surviving branch of the even more ancient clade Anapsida, which includes groups such as the procolophonoids, millerettids and pareiasaurs. Most of the anapsids became extinct in the late Permian period, with the exception of the procolophonoids and the precursors of the testudines (turtles and tortoises).
While the Oxford English Dictionary refers to a tortoise as a "slow-moving land reptile with a scaly or leathery domed shell into which it can retract its head and legs" [1], in American English it is not uncommon for such animals to be referred to incorrectly as turtle.
Contents
[hide]
* 1 Lifespan
* 2 Partial species list
* 3 Further reading
* 4 See also
* 5 External links
* 6 Gallery
[edit] Lifespan
Tortoises generally have lifespans comparable with those of human beings, and some individuals are known to have lived longer than 150 years. Because of this, they symbolize longevity in some cultures, such as China. The oldest tortoise ever recorded, indeed the oldest individual animal ever recorded, was Tui Malila, who was presented to the Tongan royal family by the British explorer Captain Cook shortly after its birth in 1777. Tui Malila remained in the care of the Tongan royal family until its death by natural causes on May 19, 1965. This means that upon its death, Tui Malila was 188 years old [2].
The Alipore Zoo in India was the home to Adwaitya, which zoo officials claimed was the oldest living animal until its death on March 23, 2006. Adwaitya (sometimes spelled with two d's) was an Aldabra Giant Tortoise brought to India by Lord Wellesley who handed it over to the Alipur Zoological Gardens in 1875 when the zoo was set up. Zoo officials state they have documentation showing that Adwaitya was at least 130 years old, but claim that he was over 250 years old (although this has not been scientifically verified). Adwaitya was said to be the pet of Robert Clive 1.
Harriet, a resident at the Australia Zoo in Queensland, was apocryphally thought to have been brought to England by Charles Darwin aboard the Beagle. Harriet died on June 23, 2006, just shy of her 176th birthday.
[edit] Partial species list
Skeleton of a tortoise
Skeleton of a tortoise
* Chersina
o Chersina angulata, Bowsprit Tortoise
* Dipsochelys
o Dipsochelys abrupta (Extinct)
o Dipsochelys arnoldi, Arnold's Giant Tortoise,
o Dipsochelys daudinii (Extinct)
o Dipsochelys dussumieri, Aldabra Giant Tortoise
o Dipsochelys grandidieri (Extinct)
o Dipsochelys hololissa, Seychelles giant tortoise
* Furculachelys
o Furculachelys nabeulensis, Tunisian Spur-thigh Tortoise
* Geochelone
o Geochelone carbonaria, Red-Footed Tortoise
o Geochelone chilensis, Chaco Tortoise
o Geochelone denticulata, Yellow-Footed Tortoise
o Geochelone elegans, Indian Star Tortoise
o Geochelone nigra, Gal谩pagos Giant Tortoise
o Geochelone pardalis, Leopard Tortoise
o Geochelone platynota, Burmese Star Tortoise
o Geochelone radiata, Radiated Tortoise
o Geochelone sulcata, African Spurred Tortoise (Sulcata Tortoise)
o Geochelone yniphora, Angulated Tortoise
* Gopherus
o Gopherus agassizii, Desert Tortoise
o Gopherus berlandieri, Texas Tortoise
o Gopherus flavomarginatus, Bolson Tortoise
o Gopherus polyphemus, Gopher Tortoise
* Homopus
o Homopus aerolatus, Parrot-Beaked Cape Tortoise
o Homopus boulengeri, Boulenger's Cape Tortoise
o Homopus femoralis, Karroo Cape Tortoise
o Homopus signatus, Speckled Cape Tortoise
o Homopus bergeri, Berger's Cape Tortoise
* Indotestudo
o Indotestudo elongata, Elongated Tortoise
o Indotestudo forsteni, Travancore Tortoise
* Kinixys
o Kinixys belliana, Bell's Hinge-Backed Tortoise
o Kinixys erosa, Serrated Hinge-Backed Tortoise
o Kinixys homeana, Home's Hinge-Backed Tortoise
o Kinixys natalensis, Natal Hinge-Backed Tortoise
o Kinixys spekii
* Malacochersus
o Malacochersus tornieri, Pancake Tortoise
* Manouria
o Manouria emys, Brown Tortoise (Mountain Tortoise)
o Manouria impressa, Impressed Tortoise
* Psammobates
o Psammobates geometricus, Geometric Tortoise
o Psammobates oculiferus, Serrated Star Tortoise
o Psammobates tentorius, African Tent Tortoise
* Pyxis
o Pyxis arachnoides, Madagascan Spider Tortoise
o Pyxis planicauda, Madagascan Flat-Tailed Tortoise
* Testudo
o Testudo atlas, Atlas tortoise, Colossochelys (Extinct)
o Testudo graeca, Greek Tortoise (Spur-Thighed Tortoise)
o Testudo hermanni, Herman's Tortoise
o Testudo horsfieldii, Russian Tortoise (Horsfield's Tortoise, or Central Asian Tortoise)
o Testudo kleinmanni, Egyptian Tortoise
o Testudo werneri, Negev Tortoise
o Testudo marginata, Marginated Tortoise
o Testudo tabulata, Jabuti
[edit] Further reading
* Chambers, Paul. A Sheltered Life: The Unexpected History of the Giant Tortoise. John Murray (Publishers), London. 2004. ISBN 0-7195-6528-6.
* Gerlach, Justin. Giant Tortoises of the Indian Ocean. Chimiara publishers, Frankfurt. 2004
[edit] See also
* Turtles and tortoises in popular culture
[edit] External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to:
Testudinidae
* Gulf Coast Turtle and Tortoise Society
* Tortoise World - Several Types of Tortoises
* Chelonia: Conservation and Care of Turtles.
* Infotortuga
Animals kept as pets
v 鈥?d 鈥?e
[hide]
Mammals Cat 鈥?Chinchilla 鈥?Degu 鈥?Dog 鈥?Donkey 鈥?Fennec 鈥?Ferret 鈥?Gerbil 鈥?Goat 鈥?Guinea pig 鈥?Hamster 鈥?Hedgehog 鈥?Horse 鈥?Monkey 鈥?Mouse 鈥?Pig 鈥?Rabbit 鈥?Rat 鈥?Skunk 鈥?Squirrel 鈥?Sugar Glider
Birds Budgerigar 鈥?Chicken 鈥?Cockatiel 鈥?Domestic Canary 鈥?Dove 鈥?Duck 鈥?Finch 鈥?Lovebird 鈥?Parrot 鈥?Peafowl
Reptiles Chameleon 鈥?Gecko 鈥?Iguana 鈥?Lizard 鈥?Snake 鈥?Tortoise 鈥?Turtle
Amphibians and fish Fish 鈥?Frog 鈥?Newt 鈥?Salamander 鈥?Toad
Arthropods African land snail 鈥?Ant 鈥?Centipede 鈥?Cricket 鈥?Hermit crab 鈥?Hissing roach 鈥?Millipede 鈥?Notostraca 鈥?Praying mantis 鈥?Scorpion 鈥?Sea-Monkey 鈥?Stick insect 鈥?Tarantula
[edit] Gallery
A baby Testudo marginata emerges from its shell
Testudo graeca ibera,Testudo hermanni boettgeri,Testudo hermanni hermanni,Testudo marginata sarda
A young (3.5 years) Sulcata Tortoise Geochelone sulcata
Aldabra Giant Tortoise Geochelone gigantea
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tortoise"
Categories: Tree of Life articles needing expert attention | Tortoises | Turtles first,get a big fish bowl and fill it with some plants.if it sme time puts its head inside its shell its most probably a box tortoise.feed it some small water plants. Is the shell black with kind of yellow outlines, its probably a herman there the most common. If you have a garden just put it out there and let it find its own food. You can also feed most green salad, mine loves cucumber. If you have to keep it inside you'll need a heat lamp and a UV light in its house. Although it will much prefer to be out when its warm.
You should take it to your local vets and get them to scan for a micro chip before you decide to keep it though( they shouldnt charge you for this), because tortoise's love to escape and its probably a neighbors pet, not just been dumped. tortoises eat a lot of grass and fruit. do not feed it too much lettuce as this will give it diarrhea.
also, you might want to take it to the vet first to get shots for the tortoise. in the beginning you shouldnt keep wild animals as pets but if you really must then get its shots.
the habitat should be outside, if its big. it should be 5 times the length of the tortoise to ensure that it will grow. do not try to fit the tortoise in a small space.
the enclosure will need grass (if you want to plant grasses there for him to eat), a sunny area, a shady area, a pool of water not deep enough for him to drown himself in, and a shelter. If you found this tortoise in it's native country then the best thing you can do is to take it back to the area where you found it and release it back into the wild - well away from a main road. It will be much happier for this rather than you keeping it in captivity. If you are in the UK then perhaps you need to put found signs up in your neighbour hood and let the RSPCA know you have found one in case an owner is looking for their lost tortoise.
Someone will identify it on this group for you and then you will be able to find the correct information about its care. You dont keep it. The tortoise was crossing the road so bring it back to it's habitat and place it in a safe area where you found it. Tortoises require special lighting, temperature and large enclosures and you should never take one from the wild. If you found it in the southern US, it is one of the types of Gopher Tortoise (Gopher, Desert, or Texas).
Most of these guys are PROTECTED BY LAW and should be returned ASAP, not only because it is incredibly illegal to own them, but more importantly for the tortoise, they are really hard for the beginner to care for.
For example, they like burrowing- nice, long, deep burrows. They crave lots of space, lots of sunlight and fresh air, and a certain diet that can be tough to duplicate.
They are also VERY stressed when captured and may refuse to eat. They are almost always loaded with parasites that are no big deal in the wild, but will cause them problems when their immune system is down because of stress.
If you were elsewhere in the world, there are two options- either they are wild and will stress out in captivity as well, or they are someone's pet and there may be a reward out for it!
In general, however, you can ID it at this site: http://www.austinsturtlepage.com/world_o...
and find cares either there or at http://www.tortoisetrust.com.uk |
