Tuesday 18 June
Greek tortoise (Testudo graeca)

Greek tortoise fact file
- Description
- Biology
- Range
- Habitat
- Status
- Threats
- Conservation
- Find out more
- Glossary
- References
- Print factsheet
Greek tortoise description
| Kingdom | Animalia |
| Phylum | Chordata |
| Class | Reptilia |
| Order | Testudines |
| Family | Testudinidae |
| Genus | Testudo (1) |
The Greek tortoise is also known as the spur-thighed tortoise for the large conical tubercle it has on each thigh. Several subspecies are recognised, which vary greatly in colour and size. The high, domed upper shell (carapace) is around 20 cm in length in T. g. graeca, but almost twice as large in T. g. ibera. The carapace varies from yellow or tan with black or dark-brown blotching to totally grey or black, while the lower shell (plastron) may be yellow to greenish-yellow, brown, or grey, with some dark-brown or black markings. Neck, limbs, and tail are yellowish brown to grey, while the head ranges from yellow to brown, grey, or black, with or without dark spotting. Large, overlapping scales cover the front of the forelimbs and there are five claws on each foot (2).
- Also known as
- common tortoise, Moorish tortoise, spur-thighed tortoise.
- French
- Tortue Mauresque.
- Spanish
- Tortuga Mora.
- Size
- Carapace length: 20 cm (2)
- Aestivation
- Period of dormancy occurring in hot, dry periods, analogous to hibernation in winter.
- Herbivorous
- Diet comprises only vegetable matter.
- IUCN Red List (January, 2007)
http://www.iucnredlist.org - Turtles of the World (CD-ROM), by Ernst, C.H., Altenburg, R.G.M. and Barbour, R.W. (February, 2007)
http://ip30.eti.uva.nl/BIS/turtles.php?selected=beschrijving&menuentry=soorten&id=395 - CITES (January, 2007)
http://www.cites.org - Tortoise Trust (February, 2007)
http://www.tortoisetrust.org/care/cgraeca.html - Kaddour, B., Slimani, T., El Mouden, E.H., Lagarde, F. and Bonnet, X. (2006) Population Structure, Population Density and Individual Catchability of Testudo graeca in the Central Jbilets (Morocco). Vie et Milieu, 56(1): 49 - 54.
- view the contents of, and Material on, the website;
- download and retain copies of the Material on their personal systems in digital form in low resolution for their own personal use;
- teachers, lecturers and students may incorporate the Material in their educational material (including, but not limited to, their lesson plans, presentations, worksheets and projects) in hard copy and digital format for use within a registered educational establishment, provided that the integrity of the Material is maintained and that copyright ownership and authorship is appropriately acknowledged by the End User.
Greek tortoise biology
North African populations mate from April to May, and again in autumn, but this varies greatly according to locality and altitude. Nesting occurs in May and June and more than one clutch may be produced each season. Eurasian and Middle Eastern tortoises generally nest in May or June, but nesting has been observed from April to July. Clutches typically contain between one and seven eggs (average three to four), but large Algerian tortoises (T. g. whitei) lay clutches of as many as 12 to 14 eggs. Depending on their location, this species may hibernate during winter, and aestivate throughout summer (2).
The Greek tortoise is herbivorous, feeding on a variety of herbaceous plants and grasses across its range (2).
TopGreek tortoise range
Native to southern Spain, northern Africa, Eastern Europe and the Middle East (3).
TopGreek tortoise habitat
North African populations occupy semi-arid scrub, grassland and brush areas in the Atlas Mountains to approximately 1,900 m above sea level, but can also be found among coastal dunes, marshland borders, rocky, brushy hillsides, and pine woods (2) (4). Eurasian and Middle-Eastern populations are found on plateaus and mountains to about 2,700 m above sea level, most often on dry open steppes, barren hillsides, and wastelands where vegetation varies from sea dune grasses to scrub thorn or dry woodlands (2).
TopGreek tortoise status
Classified as Vulnerable (VU) on the IUCN Red List 2006 (1) and listed on Appendix II of CITES (3). There are several recognised subspecies, although taxonomic classification continues to be hotly debated. The IUCN only lists one subspecies, T. g. nikolskii, which is classified as Critically Endangered (CR) (1).
TopGreek tortoise threats
The Greek tortoise is threatened by illegal harvesting for the pet trade, as well as habitat loss and degradation, mostly due to overgrazing by livestock (5).
TopGreek tortoise conservation
Various studies have been conducted into the population status, ecology and biology of the Greek tortoise, but these have largely been restricted to the northern part of its range, notably in Spain and Greece (5).
TopAuthentication
This information is awaiting authentication by a species expert, and will be updated as soon as possible. If you are able to help please contact: arkive@wildscreen.org.ukTopGlossary
References
More »Related species
This species is featured in:
This species is featured in the Mediterranean Basin eco-region
Close
Image credit
© Eyal Bartov
Eyal Bartov
bartove@netvision.net.il
http://www.eyalbartov.com
Close
Link to this photo
Embed this ARKive thumbnail link by copying and pasting the code below.
Terms of Use - The displayed thumbnail may be used as a link from your website to ARKive's online content for private, scientific, conservation or educational purposes only. It may NOT be used within Apps.
Read more about
Close
MyARKive
MyARKive offers the scrapbook feature to signed-up members, allowing you to organize your favourite ARKive images and videos and share them with friends.
Close
Terms and Conditions of Use of Materials
Copyright in this website and materials contained on this website (Material) belongs to Wildscreen or its licensors.
Visitors to this website (End Users) are entitled to:
End Users shall not copy or otherwise extract, alter or manipulate Material other than as permitted in these Terms and Conditions of Use of Materials.
Additional use of flagged material
Green flagged material 
Certain Material on this website (Licence 4 Material) displays a green flag next to the Material and is available for not-for-profit conservation or educational use. This material may be used by End Users, who are individuals or organisations that are in our opinion not-for-profit, for their not-for-profit conservation or not-for-profit educational purposes. Low resolution, watermarked images may be copied from this website by such End Users for such purposes. If you require high resolution or non-watermarked versions of the Material, please contact Wildscreen with details of your proposed use.
Creative commons material
Certain Material on this website has been licensed to Wildscreen under a Creative Commons Licence. These images are clearly marked with the Creative Commons buttons and may be used by End Users only in the way allowed by the specific Creative Commons Licence under which they have been submitted. Please see http://creativecommons.org for details.
Any other use
Please contact the copyright owners directly (copyright and contact details are shown for each media item) to negotiate terms and conditions for any use of Material other than those expressly permitted above. Please note that many of the contributors to ARKive are commercial operators and may request a fee for such use.
Save as permitted above, no person or organisation is permitted to incorporate any copyright material from this website into any other work or publication in any format (this includes but is not limited to: websites, Apps, CDs, DVDs, intranets, extranets, signage, digital communications or on printed materials for external or other distribution). Use of the Material for promotional, administrative or for-profit purposes is not permitted.














