Grooved tortoise, Spur tortoise, African Spur Thigh tortoise, Sulcata tortoise
The African spurred tortoise (Centrochelys sulcata) is a species of tortoise inhabiting the southern edge of the Sahara desert in Africa. It is the third-largest species of tortoise in the world, the largest mainland species of tortoise, and the only extant species in the genus Centrochelys.
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CrepuscularCrepuscular animals are those that are active primarily during twilight (that is, the periods of dawn and dusk). This is distinguished from diurnal...
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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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GraminivoreIn zoology, a graminivore (not to be confused with a granivore) is an herbivorous animal that feeds primarily on grass. Graminivory is a form of g...
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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...
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BurrowingA 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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OviparousOviparous animals are female animals that lay their eggs, with little or no other embryonic development within the mother. This is the reproductive...
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GrazingGrazing is a method of feeding in which a herbivore feeds on plants such as grasses, or other multicellular organisms such as algae. In agriculture...
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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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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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AestivationAestivation is a state of animal dormancy, similar to hibernation, although taking place in the summer rather than the winter. Aestivation is chara...
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starts withThe African spurred tortoise of the desert is well camouflaged with its overall sandy colors, having thick yellow-brown to golden skin and a brownish shell. Its wide, oval carapace shows noticeable grooves at its front and back edges and noticeable growth rings on each scute, which become marked, particularly with age. Large scales that overlap cover the front of the forelimbs, while the rear surface of the thighs have two or three large spurs of a conical shape, which gives the species its name.
This tortoise inhabits the Sahara’s southern edge, from Senegal and Mauritania, through Chad, Mali, the Sudan, and Ethiopia as far as Eritrea. They also may be found in Somalia and Niger. They live in hot, arid areas, ranging from dry savannahs to desert fringes, where there are usually no permanent water supplies.
These tortoises are very aggressive with each other, starting from when they hatch. Ramming each other and attempts at flipping each other over are behaviors that are common for males. These tortoises like burrowing and are well adapted to it. For tortoises, they are very active and strong. When the weather is too hot or cold, they go into a burrow, which also helps them avoid dehydration, as they depend mostly on metabolic water as well as the moisture from food for water. They remain in their burrows for hours, and if they come across mud, they flip it up onto their backs. If temperatures climb higher than 40 C, they will salivate and smear their forearms with the saliva to help cool down. They are most active during dusk and dawn and usually bask in the morning in order to raise the temperature of their body after the cold of the night.
African spurred tortoises are herbivores (graminivores), eating succulent plants both for food and much of the water they need. In the wild, their diet consists of grasses, flowers, cacti, and weeds.
African spurred tortoises are polygynous breeders. This means that males will mate with more than one female during the breeding season. Breeding takes place from June to March, though from September to November after the rains it is more common. Males grow aggressive and ram each other to flip over any competition. While they ram and bite one another, they make grunts, croaks, and whistles. During breeding, they are very vocal. After mating, females dig several nests before deciding which one is most suitable. A clutch numbers 15 - 30 eggs and on average one egg is laid every 3 minutes. The mother covers the eggs and they incubate for about 8 months. In captivity, the eggs hatch between 90-180 days, the average being 100-120 days. About 2 inches long, hatchlings are yellow, and each scute has a heavy dark brown outline. The young are feisty and active, and will often ram into other hatchlings and objects that are nearby.
African spurred tortoise numbers have rapidly declined due to habitat loss, especially in Mali, Chad, Ethiopia, and Niger, largely because of urbanization, desertification, and overgrazing from domestic livestock. Several ethnic groups that inhabit the Sahel, particularly nomadic tribes, eat this species, and it is also trapped for international trade, both as pets and for its body parts that are reportedly used for longevity potions in Japan. Mostly juvenile individuals are the ones captured for trade, so as the African spurred tortoise takes 15 years to become mature, there is serious concern that populations in the wild may not be able to renew themselves, meaning local populations will become extinct.
The IUCN Red List and other sources do not provide the African spurred tortoise total population size. Currently, this species is classified as Vulnerable (VU) on the IUCN Red List.
