ANIMALS FINDER

Marginated tortoise

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Hàbitat Natural
Location in the zoo

Escolta'l

Geographic distribution:

Greece and southern Albania

Scientific name:
- Testudo marginata
Taxonomy:
- Class: Reptilia
- Order: Testudinata
- Family: Testudinidae
Biology:
- Area of origin: Europe
- Habitat: Forest
- Social life: Solitary
- Food: Herbivorous

Rating:
- Reptile
Physical Characteristics:
- Longevity: more than 40 years
- Weight at birth:
- Middleweight: 4 - 6 kg
- Length: 30 - 40 cm
Reproduction
- Reproduction: Oviparous
- Incubation: 2 - 3 months
- Number of eggs: 6 - 10 eggs

Risk level of the species

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Red list: Scale according to the situation of the species IUCN

Description

This species is characterised by its long and convex carapace, which is black with a yellow spot on each dorsal scute. The yellow plastron has several black marks that are almost triangular. With age, the colouring turns more uniform and darker, with the front and back of the carapace becoming wider and flatter. The olive-green or yellowish-brown extremities end in strong, albeit not very sharp, claws.
The Marginated tortoise is the largest in Europe, as it can weigh more than 5 kg and measure up to 40-cm long.
Their area of distribution includes of a good part of Greece and southern Albania, occupying rocky scrublands and Mediterranean forests protected from the wind. They love sunbathing, although they keep to the shade during the hottest hours of the day to not overheat.
Herbivorous, they eat a large variety of grasses, flowers and fruits. They normally reproduce in the spring and courtship can be very aggressive, with the male pursuing and mounting the female while moving its head from side to side.
Three to 10 eggs are laid in June or July in holes some 10-centimetres deep that the female digs. The hatchlings emerge from August to October, depending on the temperature of the ground.
Although this species is protected in Greece, populations are shrinking due to the degradation of their habitat, largely due to repeated forest fires, as well as capturing them for pets.

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