The Texas tortoise (''Gopherus berlandieri''), is a species of tortoise in the
family Testudinidae. The species ''G. berlandieri'' is one of six
species of
tortoises that are native to North America.
Geographic range
''G. berlandieri'' is found from southern
Texas southward into the
Mexican
Mexican may refer to:
Mexico and its culture
*Being related to, from, or connected to the country of Mexico, in North America
** People
*** Mexicans, inhabitants of the country Mexico and their descendants
*** Mexica, ancient indigenous people ...
states of
Coahuila
Coahuila (), formally Coahuila de Zaragoza (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Coahuila de Zaragoza ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Coahuila de Zaragoza), is one of the 32 states of Mexico.
Coahuila borders the Mexican states of N ...
,
Nuevo León
Nuevo León () is a state in the northeast region of Mexico. The state was named after the New Kingdom of León, an administrative territory from the Viceroyalty of New Spain, itself was named after the historic Spanish Kingdom of León. With a ...
, and
Tamaulipas.
Etymology
The
specific epithet
In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bot ...
, ''berlandieri'', is in honor of naturalist
Jean Louis Berlandier, who worked for the Mexican government on one of the first biological surveys of Texas.
/sup>[Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). ''The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles''. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. . ("Berlandier's Tortoise ''Gopherus berlandieri'' ", p. 24).] As such, some sources refer to it as Berlandier's tortoise.[
]
Biology
The Texas tortoise, unlike other species of gopher tortoise, is not an adept burrower. Its preferred habitat is dry scrub and grasslands
A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominated by grasses (Poaceae). However, sedge (Cyperaceae) and rush (Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes, like clover, and other herbs. Grasslands occur natural ...
. Succulent
In botany, succulent plants, also known as succulents, are plants with parts that are thickened, fleshy, and engorged, usually to retain water in arid climates or soil conditions. The word ''succulent'' comes from the Latin word ''sucus'', meani ...
plants, a preferred food of the Texas tortoise, are common in these areas. It especially likes the fruit of cacti such as the prickly pear.
Conservation status
Though considered an animal of low concern by the IUCN Red List, the Texas tortoise is listed as a threatened species in the state of Texas, and thus protected by state law. It is illegal to collect or possess them. The Mexican federal government list ''Gopherus berlandieri'' as A (= Threatened) in Mexico. Likewise, using Environmental Vulnerability Scores, ''Gopherus berlandieri'' scored 18, a high vulnerability species on a scale of 0-20, in evaluations of both Tamaulipas and Nuevo Leon herpetofauna.[Nevárez-de los Reyes, M., D. Lazcano, E. García-Padilla, V. Mata-Silva, J. D. Johnson, and L. D. Wilson (2016). "The herpetofauna of Nuevo León, Mexico: composition, distribution, and conservation". ''Mesoamerican Herpetology'' 3: 558–638.] In 2018, the IUCN Tortoise and Freshwater Turtle Specialist Group recommended a re-assessment and re-classification of all six ''Gopherus'' species
Gallery
File:Texas Tortoise - Gopherus berlandieri.jpg, Texas tortoise (''Gopherus berlandieri''), Val Verde Co, Texas, USA (2005).
File:Texas Tortoise Beeville TX June 2011.jpg, ''Gopherus berlandieri'', Bee Co. Texas, USA (June 2011).
File:Texas Tortoise (close-up) Beeville TX June 2011.jpg, ''Gopherus berlandieri'', Bee Co. Texas, USA (2011).
File:Texas Tortoise Gular Scute Beeville TX June 2011.jpg, Elongated gular scutes of male, Bee Co. Texas, USA (2011).
File:Gopherus berlandieri, Texas Tortoise, Tamaulipas.jpg, Texas tortoise (''Gopherus berlandieri''), northern Tamaulipas, Mexico (2007).
References
External links
*
*
Texas tortoiseTexas tortoise care sheet
{{Taxonbar , from=Q570290
Gopherus
Tortoise, Texas
Tortoise, Texas
Tortoise, Texas
Reptiles described in 1857