Kleinmann’s tortoise, Leith’s tortoise, Kleinmann's tortoise, Leith's tortoise, Negev tortoise
Kleinmann's tortoise (Testudo kleinmanni), also called commonly the Egyptian tortoise, Leith's tortoise, and the Negev tortoise, is a critically endangered species of neck-hiding tortoise in the family Testudinidae. The species is native to Egypt, Libya, and Israel. The species was once more widespread, but its numbers are now dwindling. The species is nearly extinct in Egypt, and complete extinction in the wild is a looming threat unless more actions are taken to protect this species.
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DiurnalDiurnal animals are active during the daytime, with a period of sleeping or other inactivity at night. The timing of activity by an animal depends ...
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HerbivoreA herbivore is an animal anatomically and physiologically adapted to eating plant material, for example, foliage, for the main component of its die...
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TerrestrialTerrestrial animals are animals that live predominantly or entirely on land (e.g., cats, ants, snails), as compared with aquatic animals, which liv...
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PrecocialPrecocial species are those in which the young are relatively mature and mobile from the moment of birth or hatching. Precocial species are normall...
Oviparous animals are female animals that lay their eggs, with little or no other embryonic development within the mother. This is the reproductive...
A burrow is a hole or tunnel excavated into the ground by an animal to create a space suitable for habitation, temporary refuge, or as a byproduct ...
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PolygynyPolygyny is a mating system in which one male lives and mates with multiple females but each female only mates with a single male.
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PolygynandryPolygynandry is a mating system in which both males and females have multiple mating partners during a breeding season.
A herd is a social grouping of certain animals of the same species, either wild or domestic. The form of collective animal behavior associated with...
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Not a migrantAnimals that do not make seasonal movements and stay in their native home ranges all year round are called not migrants or residents.
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starts withOnce found throughout Egypt and Libya, this tortoise - one of the smallest in the world - effectively is extinct in Egypt as a result of habitat destruction. Although there are two populations in Libya, much of the coastline habitat has been lost. Today Egyptian tortoises continue to decline because of the illegal pet trade and hunting for folk medicine.
Egyptian tortoises are found along the North African coast on the Mediterranean coastal strip from Libya to past Egypt’s Nile Delta. On the verge of extinction, they can still be seen in Tripolitania and Cyrenaica in Libya. They inhabit habitats which are desert and semi-desert, usually with compact gravel and sand plains, scattered rocks and sandy, shallow wadis, and also coastal salt-marsh areas, brushy areas with scrub thorn, and dry woodlands.
Egyptian tortoises are active mostly during warm periods and least active during very hot or very cold months. During cooler months, they are most active at midday, and in hot months they are only active in the early morning or the late afternoon, spending the remainder of the day hiding under the cover of a bush or in an animal burrow.
In captivity, Egyptian tortoises eat vegetables, fruit and grasses, but it is not known what they eat in the wild. They probably eat seasonal plants like leaves, grasses, flowers, fruits, and even cacti.
Egyptian tortoises are amongst the most poorly understood of the Mediterranean tortoises and little information is available about their mating behavior. Their mating system is most likely to be polygynous (one male to multiple females), and may be polyandrous (one female to many males). In the wild, courtship and mating have only been recorded in March, although in captivity, reproduction occurs in April and August to November. A remarkable feature of this tortoise’s breeding behavior is the distinctive, loud call made by males during mating, which is likened to a mourning dove’s call, quite unlike a sound made by any other Mediterranean tortoise. During courtship, the male seems to ram the female, and then there is sometimes a frantic chasing episode. They dig nests in sandy earth, where 1-5 eggs will be laid. Incubation is for about 2.5-3 months. When they hatch, the young only eat a small quantity of food; instead they prefer resting in the shade. Egyptian tortoises become mature at the age of 5 years.
The main threats to the Egyptian tortoise are habitat destruction and intensive commercial collection. Agricultural expansion, overgrazing, cultivation, and urban encroachment have meant enormous pressure on this species’ fragile and dwindling habitat, drastically reducing available vegetation for cover and food. In addition, in Egypt they have suffered heavily from collection for the pet trade, both national and international, which shifted its attention to Libyan animals after Egyptian subpopulations became extinct. Trade in this species in Libya is a major threat to the remaining world population.
According to the IUCN Red List, the total Egyptian tortoise population is around 7,470 individuals, of which approximately 5,000 are mature individuals. Currently this species is classified as Critically Endangered (CR) and its numbers today are decreasing.
