Spur Thighed or Sulcata Tortoise
SPECIES: Geochelone sulcata
STATUS: Least Concern
HABITAT: The Sulcata Tortoise lives on the southern edge of the Sahara Desert and surrounding semiarid regions.
DIET: Sulcata Tortoises are herbivores, eating only plants and grasses.
GENERAL: The Sulcata Tortoise is the third largest tortoise species in the world, attaining up to weights of 150 to 200 pounds.
To stay cool in the African heat they burrow into the ground. Tortoises have been known to dig tunnels up to 25 feet in length. During the hottest season they may stay underground for months. Females lay a clutch of 15-30 or more eggs that will take up to 95 days to hatch. Each baby will be about 2 inches long when they hatch.
When the tortoise is threatened it pulls its head inward and then pulls its legs in front of it head, thus protecting the tortoise from predators.
The Spur Thigh Tortoise, also known as the Sulcata Tortoise, gets the name Spur Thigh Tortoise because of the protrusions on its front legs
When the tortoise is threatened it pulls its head inward and then pulls its legs in front of it head, thus protecting the tortoise from predators.
These are Spur Thigh Tortoise eggs, each one is about the size of a ping pong ball. After 90 to 100 days of incubating in a nest dug about 12 inches deep they hatch.
Spur Thigh Tortoise immediately after hatching.
Baby Spur Thigh Tortoises are about 1 1/2 to 2 inches long when they hatch.
The egg sack is clearly visible; the baby will live off the nutrients in the egg sack for about 3 days after which it will be slowly absorbed into the body during this time.
The Galapagos Tortoise (Chelonoidis nigra) is the largest tortoise species in the world. Getting up to 900 pounds.
Aldabra Tortoises (Aldabrachelys gigantea) are the second largest tortoise in the world. They can weigh as much as 550 pounds.
Sulcata Tortoises are the third largest tortoise in the world, attaining weights of 140 to 200 pounds.
