Animals > Mediterranean tortoises

Mediterranean tortoises

Testudo graeca (spur-thighed tortoise) · Testudo marginata (marginated tortoise)

AUDIO GUIDE

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Calm, long-lived and full of history: that is what Mediterranean tortoises are like. Here you can meet two species. The spur-thighed tortoise is one of ours: it lives in the wild in Doñana and in parts of Almería and Murcia, as well as in North Africa. It has a domed shell with dark markings and a small spur on each thigh. The marginated tortoise comes from Greece and is the largest land tortoise in Europe. It is recognizable by the rear edge of its shell, flared like a skirt. Both spend the winter buried, with their hearts beating very slowly, and wake up with the warmth of spring. And they can live more than fifty years. The spur-thighed tortoise is protected and vulnerable. If you ever find one in the countryside, leave it where it is: that is its home.

Fun facts

  • The spur-thighed tortoise lives in the wild in Doñana and in parts of Almería and Murcia, as well as in North Africa.
  • The marginated tortoise comes from Greece and is the largest land tortoise in Europe; the rear edge of its shell is flared like a skirt.
  • They spend the winter buried, with their hearts beating very slowly, and wake up with the warmth of spring.
  • If you find one in the countryside, leave it where it is: that is its home.

General information

Height Shell of 15 to 35 cm, depending on the species
Weight Between 1 and 5 kg, depending on the species
Diet Herbivore. Grasses, flowers and fruit.
Gestation Incubation of 60 to 90 days
Life expectancy More than 50 years
Habitat Mediterranean scrubland of Europe and North Africa

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tortugas-mediterraneas