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The gopher tortoise (Gopherus polyphemus) is a species of tortoise in the family Testudinidae. The species is native to the southeastern United States. The gopher tortoise is seen as a keystone species because it digs burrows that provide shelter for at least 360 other animal species.
What is a gopher tortoise? The gopher tortoise is about as charming as a tortoise can get. Originating 60 million years ago, it’s one of the oldest living species on the planet and the only native North American tortoise species east of the Mississippi River.
The gopher tortoise is one of five tortoise species native to North America and the only tortoise species east of the Mississippi River. The sex of individual tortoises can usually be determined by shell dimensions.
The gopher tortoise is one of five North American tortoise species and is the only tortoise naturally found east of the Mississippi River. Its range includes the southeastern Coastal Plain from southeastern Louisiana east to southern South Carolina, and south to Florida.
What is the gopher tortoise? The gopher tortoise earned its name because it digs deep burrows —like a gopher. This large tortoise, which can weigh up to 15 pounds, has scaly, shovel-like...
Florida’s native and nonnative turtle species are commonly misidentified as gopher tortoises. You can tell these other species apart from gopher tortoises by looking for the characteristics listed here in our guide.
Gopher tortoises are long-lived reptiles that occupy upland habitat throughout Florida including forests, pastures, and yards. They dig deep burrows for shelter and forage on low-growing plants. Gopher tortoises share their burrows with more than 350 other species, and are therefore referred to as a keystone species.
The gopher tortoise is a large, (shell 15 to 37 centimeters or 5.9 to 14.6 inches long) dark-brown to grayish-black terrestrial turtle with elephantine hind feet, shovel-like forefeet, and a gular projection beneath the head on the yellowish, hingeless plastron or undershell (Ernst and Barbour 1972).
The gopher tortoise is the keystone species of America's longleaf pine forest, providing shelter for more than 350 species in its underground burrows.
Gopher tortoises have a tremendous impact on the environment with the burrows they create, providing protection from elements, fire and predators for approximately 350 other animals, which all require healthy longleaf ecosystems to thrive.