The phenology of egg production and oviposition in organisms affects survival and development of neonates and thus, both offspring and maternal fitness. In addition, in organisms with environmental ...

LOS ANGELES— A scientific paper released today formally splits the desert tortoise into two species, a taxonomic development that could have real on-the-ground impacts on imperiled desert tortoises.

Evaporative water loss from the integument of the desert tortoise Gopherus agassizii constitutes a major proportion of the water loss, but is far less than in tortoises from wetter regions.

They have stumpy legs with strong feet designed for digging massive holes in sandy dunes. Gopher tortoises are among Florida's most ancient-looking critters, and they thrive at places like Bowditch ...

Desert tortoises have lived in the deserts of California, Arizona, Nevada and Utah since the Pleistocene. In the early years of the 20th century, they still thrived within the Southwest's arid ...

Not so long ago, one Georgia species was in critical danger of extinction, but in 2022 for the ecosystem, The US Fish and Wildlife Service declared the gopher tortoise (Gopherus polyphemus)to be no ...

If you see this slowpoke on the road, give him wide berth. And, if traffic’s light, maybe even stop and give him a lift – off the asphalt. This traveler – Florida’s native gopher tortoise – merits ...

Florida law enforcement detained a slow-moving Florida native after the suspect refused to clear the road when asked. The gopher tortoise was walking along Nocatee Parkway, north of St. Augustine, ...

The California Fish and Game Commission on Wednesday granted temporary endangered species status to the Mojave desert tortoise when it agreed to consider the dusty, armored herbivore as a candidate ...

Why did the tortoise cross the road? That’s the question a deputy from the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office may have asked himself the other day. According to a June 21 Facebook post from the agency, ...