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DESERT TORTOISE
Gopherus
agassizii |
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desert tortoise has a hard upper shell (carapace) which is about
9 to 15 inches long, a gular horn protruding out from the lower
shell (plastron), flattened muscular forelimbs used for
burrowing, column-like hind limbs, and a very short tail.
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| It
spends 95% of its life in burrows to
escape the extreme temperatures of the desert that can
range from 140 degrees F to well below freezing. The
adults can survive for about a year without water.
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| Reproduction
rate is very low. The female does not reproduce until 15 to 20 years old, and may lay 1 to 14 eggs per clutch,
if adequate forage is available. She lays the eggs in a
shallow pit, covers them with sand and then abandons
them. The incubation period is between 70 to 120 days.
Cool temperatures (79 to 87 degrees F) result in male
hatchlings and warmer temperatures (88 to 91 degrees F)
result in females; but only 2 to 3 out of 100 hatchlings may survive to
adulthood.
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