TortTime

Don’t let the lives of these tortoises get lost in the red tape and political plays surrounding this issue. Euthanasia is still on the table, media coverage continues to be confusing, read more and spread the word!

(Message & Image From The American Tortoise Rescue’s Facebook Page)

If you live in Nevada only, you can adopt. Just like California it is against the law to move a desert tortoise out of state. Here’s the news according to Herp Digest: All numbers to Desert Tortoise Conservation Center (DTCC) have been disconnected – (my note – no surprise there – don’t want any more nasty media calls). It doesn’t seem they are adopting out any tortoises at the moment, though tortoises are being accepted, according to the website at The Animal Foundation (formerly Lied Animal Shelter) 655 N. Mojave Road, Las Vegas, NV 89101 (702) 384-3333. According to a recent article posted on DTCC website, this group seems to be just turning them over to DTCC. So if you are in Nevada, call the Foundation if you have a tortoise to give up or just to inquire about adopting one. It’s still a mess but maybe you can save a tortoise from euthanasia.

Don’t let the lives of these tortoises get lost in the red tape and political plays surrounding this issue. Euthanasia is still on the table, media coverage continues to be confusing, read more and spread the word!

(Message & Image From The American Tortoise Rescue’s Facebook Page)

If you live in Nevada only, you can adopt. Just like California it is against the law to move a desert tortoise out of state. Here’s the news according to Herp Digest: All numbers to Desert Tortoise Conservation Center (DTCC) have been disconnected – (my note – no surprise there – don’t want any more nasty media calls). It doesn’t seem they are adopting out any tortoises at the moment, though tortoises are being accepted, according to the website at The Animal Foundation (formerly Lied Animal Shelter) 655 N. Mojave Road, Las Vegas, NV 89101 (702) 384-3333. According to a recent article posted on DTCC website, this group seems to be just turning them over to DTCC. So if you are in Nevada, call the Foundation if you have a tortoise to give up or just to inquire about adopting one. It’s still a mess but maybe you can save a tortoise from euthanasia.

TortTime

(Via Tuscon News Now  )

Its the most active season for Desert tortoises in the south west. This includes the Mojave Desert tortoise and the Sonoma Tortoise, both protected by Arizona Fish and Game. 

Tucson Today shared some important Do’s and Don’ts released by the Arizona Game and Fish Department. Read them, Share them, Be an Educated Tortoise Lover. 

Should you encounter a tortoise :

  • Do not remove a tortoise from its habitat. Taking a wild tortoise home is illegal in Arizona. Additionally, most tortoises stay in the same small area their entire lives, so if a tortoise is moved to a new location it will not know where to find food and shelter and will likely die.
  • Do not release a captive tortoise into the wild. Captive desert tortoises cannot be released into the wild as they can pass diseases to wild populations and displace wild tortoises. It is also illegal to release captive animals into the wild.
  • Keep dogs away from both captive and wild desert tortoises. Even the most gentle dog can pose a serious threat to a tortoise.
  • If you come across a desert tortoise crossing a busy road, if traffic safely permits it, pick the tortoise up and gently move it to the other side of the road. Carry the animal so that it is level to the ground, and move it in the same direction it was headed.
  • If a person encounters a desert tortoise, Game and Fish biologists want to know. Please email the details, and a photo if possible to take one without handling the tortoise, to turtlesproject@azgfd.gov.

(Via Tuscon News Now  )

Its the most active season for Desert tortoises in the south west. This includes the Mojave Desert tortoise and the Sonoma Tortoise, both protected by Arizona Fish and Game. 

Tucson Today shared some important Do’s and Don’ts released by the Arizona Game and Fish Department. Read them, Share them, Be an Educated Tortoise Lover. 

Should you encounter a tortoise :

  • Do not remove a tortoise from its habitat. Taking a wild tortoise home is illegal in Arizona. Additionally, most tortoises stay in the same small area their entire lives, so if a tortoise is moved to a new location it will not know where to find food and shelter and will likely die.
  • Do not release a captive tortoise into the wild. Captive desert tortoises cannot be released into the wild as they can pass diseases to wild populations and displace wild tortoises. It is also illegal to release captive animals into the wild.
  • Keep dogs away from both captive and wild desert tortoises. Even the most gentle dog can pose a serious threat to a tortoise.
  • If you come across a desert tortoise crossing a busy road, if traffic safely permits it, pick the tortoise up and gently move it to the other side of the road. Carry the animal so that it is level to the ground, and move it in the same direction it was headed.
  • If a person encounters a desert tortoise, Game and Fish biologists want to know. Please email the details, and a photo if possible to take one without handling the tortoise, to turtlesproject@azgfd.gov.
TortTime

You can be a desert tortoise researcher without the ridiculous student loan debt that is graduate school! Download the Mojave Desert Tortoise app! Its free for iphone and android users. 

Desert Tortoise? Theres an app for that. 

(Written by: Janet Zimmerman)

This is the prime season for desert tortoises, which are most active in April and May when they emerge from burrows where they have spent the winter to feed and mate.

I was lucky enough to see three of these unique and threatened creatures recently while vacationing near Joshua Tree. At the time I didn’t know about the new Mojave Desert Tortoise App, which helps researchers track sightings.

People who see a tortoise take a photo and the app adds GPS data and sends it to researchers at the Mojave Desert Ecosystem Program and Desert Managers Group.

The app is free for the iPhone and Android. Sightings are posted at www.californiadesert.gov.

You can be a desert tortoise researcher without the ridiculous student loan debt that is graduate school! Download the Mojave Desert Tortoise app! Its free for iphone and android users. 

Desert Tortoise? Theres an app for that. 

(Written by: Janet Zimmerman)

This is the prime season for desert tortoises, which are most active in April and May when they emerge from burrows where they have spent the winter to feed and mate.

I was lucky enough to see three of these unique and threatened creatures recently while vacationing near Joshua Tree. At the time I didn’t know about the new Mojave Desert Tortoise App, which helps researchers track sightings.

People who see a tortoise take a photo and the app adds GPS data and sends it to researchers at the Mojave Desert Ecosystem Program and Desert Managers Group.

The app is free for the iPhone and Android. Sightings are posted at www.californiadesert.gov.

TortTime

This four minute short movie depicts the hatching of a Mojave Desert Tortoise. This is the continuation of a sixty million year process for this threatened species. One of the surprising moments in the movie is when the hatchling tumbles from its shell and is propped up by its yolk. This is an evolutionary adaptation where the young absorb the yolk over several hours and they then use that nutrition to sustain themselves during the first few months of their lives. This is an especially handy adaptation as the young tortoises hatch in late summer when temperatures can exceed 110 degrees making the search for food especially difficult. 

The images shown here are part of a larger movie expected to be released by the USGS in November, 2009. That program will depict the USGS research program on the Desert Tortoise and the role of that research in managing desert environments to allow the species to recover and escape the threat of extinction. 

This movie was produced by the USGS Western Ecological Research Center and USGS Western Region Office of Communications in cooperation with the Las Vegas based Desert Tortoise Conservation Center, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Bureau of Land Management, the Nevada Department of Wildlife and the San Diego Zoo.

(Source: http://www.youtube.com/)

This four minute short movie depicts the hatching of a Mojave Desert Tortoise. This is the continuation of a sixty million year process for this threatened species. One of the surprising moments in the movie is when the hatchling tumbles from its shell and is propped up by its yolk. This is an evolutionary adaptation where the young absorb the yolk over several hours and they then use that nutrition to sustain themselves during the first few months of their lives. This is an especially handy adaptation as the young tortoises hatch in late summer when temperatures can exceed 110 degrees making the search for food especially difficult. 

The images shown here are part of a larger movie expected to be released by the USGS in November, 2009. That program will depict the USGS research program on the Desert Tortoise and the role of that research in managing desert environments to allow the species to recover and escape the threat of extinction. 

This movie was produced by the USGS Western Ecological Research Center and USGS Western Region Office of Communications in cooperation with the Las Vegas based Desert Tortoise Conservation Center, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Bureau of Land Management, the Nevada Department of Wildlife and the San Diego Zoo.