It is the largest land tortoise on the African continent, and in the world only the giants of the Galápagos and Aldabra islands surpass it. Meet the African spurred tortoise, which can exceed one hundred kilos and live more than seventy years. It lives in the Sahel, south of the Sahara, a place of extreme heat. Its strategy? Digging. With its powerful front legs it builds burrows several meters long, where it takes shelter during the harshest hours of the day. Its name comes from the spurs on its thighs. And the males are real fighters: they compete by ramming each other with their shells and trying to flip their rival over. Today it is endangered. And a piece of advice: a hatchling may seem like an adorable gift, but it will grow to the size of an adult and outlive you.