Berlandier's Tortoise

Maximum longevity: 30.7 years (captivity)

The omnivorous Berlandier's tortoise feeds primarily on grasses and herbs (2), but when these are in short supply the red fruits, flowers and stems of Opuntia cacti (prickly pears) are often eaten (2) (5). Insects, snails, faecal matter and animal bones may also be consumed (2). Unlike other species of Gopherus, such as the burrowing gopher tortoise (Gopherus polyphemus), Berlandier's tortoise does not dig an extensive burrow. Instead, it uses its forelimbs and the sides of its shell to push away debris and soil to create a shallow resting place called a pallet (2). This pallet is generally located under a bush or cactus, and as the tortoise returns to use the pallet again and again, the pallet gradually deepens, reaching depths of 1.5 metres. Sometimes, Berlandier's tortoise uses a suitably-sized mammal burrow and may excavate it further (2). In Texas, the courtship and mating season of Berlandier's tortoise extends from June until September. During courtship, the male follows the female, bobbing his head in her direction. Eventually catching up with the female, the male attempts to stop her by biting her head, forefeet and the back of her shell and by ramming her with his gular projection, a sturdy extension on the front of the lower shell, just below the chin (2). The female will often pivot around to avoid this, but eventually stops and withdraws her head, as the male continues to push her around. Finally, he will mount her from behind, with his forefeet resting on her shell, and mating takes place (2). Nesting takes place between April and July, with the female laying a small clutch of eggs (usually two or three eggs) in a depression in the ground. One or two clutches are laid each year and the eggs hatch after 88 to 118 days of incubation (2). Berlandier's tortoise is slow to mature and it is thought that females may not breed successfully until they are over a decade old (2) (5).

Fortunately for Berlandier's tortoise, in areas where cattle grazing predominates, suitable, healthy habitat remains (6), and this tortoise has been protected by law in Texas since 1967 (2), where it is listed as Threatened (4). Its listing on Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) means that any international trade requires a permit and trade levels are monitored (3).

This North American tortoise has a somewhat oblong, rather flat-topped carapace (upper shell) with a rough, ridged appearance. The carapace is largely brown, with yellowish-orange centres to some of the scutes (2) (4), while the plastron (lower shell) is yellow. The wedge-shaped head has a pointed snout and a slightly hooked upper jaw (2). The sturdy hind legs are columnar and somewhat resemble those of an elephant (4). The head, limbs and tail are all yellowish-brown (2). Male Berlandier's tortoises can be distinguished by their slightly longer and narrower carapaces and their concave plastron (2).

Berlandier's tortoise inhabits semi-desert areas in Mexico, from sea level up to elevations of 884 metres, and scrub forests in humid and subtropical areas of southern Texas up to 100 or 200 metres (2) (6). It shows a preference for well-drained, sandy soils and open scrub woods (2).

This tortoise occurs in southern Texas, U.S.A. and north-east Mexico (5).

Classified as Lower Risk / Least Concern (LR/lc) on the IUCN Red List 2007 (1) and listed on Appendix II of CITES (3).

In some parts of its range, Berlandier's tortoise numbers are falling as a result of intensive agriculture (2). While light grazing by cattle can be beneficial, as it encourages growth of prickly pears, large-scale intensive agriculture destroys the natural habitat of this reptile (6). Such impacts have been particularly felt in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas, where over 90 per cent of semi-desert habitat has been destroyed by farming operations (2) (6), and 80 per cent of the remaining suitable habitat is unprotected and threatened by development. In the past, many Berlandier's tortoises were collected for the pet trade (2). While this is now illegal in Texas, a trade in this species continues and a lesser number are exploited for food (7). In addition, many Berlandier's tortoises are killed each year on roads (2).

Continent: Middle-America North-America
Distribution: USA (S Texas south of Del Rio and San Antonio), Mexico (E Coahuila, Nuevo Leon, Tamaulipas)
Type locality: Brownsville, Cameron County, Texas.

Xerobates berlandieri Agassiz, 1857

[= Gopherus berlandieri (Agassiz, 1857); fide, Stejneger, 1893:161]

Agassiz, 1857, Contrib. Nat. Hist. U.S. America (Testudinata), p. 447, pl. 3: figs. 17–19).

Syntypes: USNM 59 (alcoholic, lost), Lower Rio Grande, Texas, collected by Arthur Schott, date unknown, cataloged 14 Feb 1856 (see “Remarks”); USNM 60(2) (alcoholic juvenile, CL 40 mm; and alcoholic juvenile, CL 71 mm), collector unknown, date unknown, cataloged Feb 1856; USNM 75 (alcoholic, lost), Nuevo Leon, Mexico, collected by Lt. Darius N. Couch, 1853; USNM 222511 (originally USNM 85, then USNM Osteo 8601, now USNM 222511, see “Remarks”) (dry skull, hyoid, and shell with legs attached, CL 148 mm) Monterey, Nuevo Leon, Mexico, collected by Lt. Darius N. Couch, 1853, recataloged Sept 1981; USNM 222512 (originally USNM Osteo 1528, then USNM Osteo 29610, now USNM 222512, see “Remarks”) (dry partial skull, CBL 47 mm), Matamoras, Tamaulipas, Mexico, collected by Jean Louis Berlandier, date unknown, originally cataloged 30 Jan 1855 as USNM Osteo 1528, recataloged Sept 1981.

Type Locality: “Limited to southern Texas and Mexico;” stated as “Brownsville, Cameron County, Texas,” by Schmidt (1953:105), and restricted to “Brownsville, Texas” by Cochran (1961:236).

Etymology: The name berlandieri is a patronym honoring Jean Louis Berlandier, an early French naturalist who worked extensively in northern Mexico.

Remarks: Cochran (1961:236) and Auffenberg and Franz (1978b:213.1) both listed only USNM 60 (2 specimens) as syntypes. However, in a letter from Agassiz to Baird dated 23 Mar 1856 (Herber, 1963:127–128), the following specimens were listed as being the Testudo nov. spec.: numbers 59, 60, 75, 85 and osteological specimen O 1536. The number for the latter specimen is actually USNM Osteo 1528 as listed by Baird in the original invoice of specimens loaned to Agassiz, dated 20 Feb 1856 (Herber, 1963:122). The number USNM Osteo 1536, which was incorrectly listed by Agassiz, applies to a Trachemys scripta. USNM Osteo 1528 was later recataloged as USNM 222512. We believe that USNM 85, originally entered into the catalog record as a dry specimen, was cataloged into the osteological collection as USNM Osteo 8601 on 8 Apr 1869 and then subsequently recataloged as USNM 222511. There is currently no specimen USNM 85 in the collection. The locality data for USNM Osteo 8601 (= USNM 222511) matches the original data entered for USNM 85. At present, USNM 59 is not in the collection under that number but it is probably one of the two specimens currently included in USNM 60. The original entry for USNM 60 did not indicate more than one specimen, nor was more than one specimen indicated for USNM 60 in the 20 Feb 1856 invoice of specimens sent by Baird to Agassiz (Herber, 1963:121). It is probable that USNM 59 and USNM 60 were initially stored in the same jar and at some point USNM 59 was retagged USNM 60 when the original numbers were obliterated and new catalog tags were applied. Specimens in the collection were regularly retagged when the original tags became illegible.

FAMILY TRIONYCHIDAE

Amyda spinifera hartwegi Conant and Goin, 1948

[= Apalone spinifera hartwegi (Conant and Goin, 1948); fide, Meylan, 1987:92]

Conant and Goin, 1948, Occas. Pap. Mus. Zool. Univ. Michigan 510:1, pl. I.

Paratypes: USNM 55683 (alcoholic male, CL 158 mm), Greenwood County, Kansas, collected by Julius Hurter, Jul–Aug 1912; USNM 91022 (alcoholic juvenile, CL 57 mm), 5 miles northeast of Winfield, Cowley County, Kansas, collected by Luther Hoyle, 28 May 1933; USNM 95301 (alcoholic male, CL 130 mm), 11 miles southeast of Winfield, Cowley County, Kansas, collected by Charles E. Burt, 31 Aug 1934; USNM 100529 (alcoholic male, CL 167 mm), Winfield, Cowley County, Kansas, collected by Charles E. Burt, 12 Aug 1935; USNM 100530 (alcoholic female, CL 109 mm), Winfield, Cowley County, Kansas, collected by Charles E. Burt, 12 Aug 1935; USNM 123446 (alcoholic male, CL 147 mm), Kansas River, Topeka, Shawnee County, Kansas, collected by Charles E. Burt, 26 Jun 1945.

Type Locality: “Wichita, Sedgwick County, Kansas.”

Other Type Material: Holotype: UMMZ 95365. Paratypes: KU 2990, 3289, 3758, 3769, 15934; MCZ 5758; UMMZ 66939–41, 69294, 75963, 95363–64.

Etymology: The name hartwegi is a patronym honoring Dr. Norman E. Hartweg of the Museum of Zoology, University of Michigan.

The Texas tortoise (Gopherus berlandieri) is a species of tortoise in the family Testudinidae. The species G. berlandieri is one of six species of tortoises that are native to North America.