Home Bio MS Pricelist Edible Plants Florida Turtles Florida Turtle Fossils Roadkill Presentations Books Videos Turtles of the World Links Glossary

Geochelone (Centrochelys) sulcata

African Spurred Tortoise

DISTRIBUTION: Central Africa from Mauritania to Ethiopia.

EMPIRE STOCK: WC most likely exported from Ghana, and CBR.

SIZE: 83 cm.

HABITAT: Arid scrub and savannah.

DIET: Grasses, Mazuri Tortoise, spineless Opuntia, romaine. Edible Plants

SEXING: Males have larger gular scutes, a concave plastron, and a longer thicker tail.

BREEDING: Produces up to 5 clutches in a season, normally 3. Clutch size varies. I have had clutches approaching 40 eggs, but 12-24 is normal.

NOTES: Sulcatas are hardy and long lived tortoises if cared for properly. They are also prolific breeders, which has caused their price to drop to a point where, unfortunately, some people buy them on a whim.  They are the third largest tortoise species in the world with prodigious appetites and defecations. Depending where you live you might have to bring them in in the winter. So, please look at the pictures and care sheet links below, do a little homework, and be realistic before buying one. Of course that applies when getting any pet, but in the case of Sulcatas it is especially important. It might save you and the tortoise from the cost of an impulse buy.

CARE SHEETS: ANAPSID CTTC 1 , CTTC  2 , CTTC  3 , CTTC 4 ,CTTC 5 , TT  , WCT

 

.

Male combat, can result in wounds, from the gular projections, and worse if a tortoise is put on its back and can't right itself.

 

 

Suggested Reading

Devaux, Bernard. 2000. La tortue qui pleure The Crying Tortoise Geochelone sulcata. SOPTOM. 87pp.

Gurley, Russ. 2002. The African Spurred Tortoise Geochelone sulcata in Captivity. Taxon Media Publishing and others. 80pp. ISBN 1-885209-25-8.

Vetter, Holger. 2005. Chelonian Library Volume 1: Leopard and African Spurred Tortoise Stigmochelys pardalis and Centrochelys sulcata. Chimaira. 189pp. ISBN 3-89973-601-x.

Wiesner, C. S., and C. Iben. 2003. influence of environmental humidity and dietary protein on pyramidal growth of carapace in African spurred tortoises (Geochelone sulcata). J. Anim. Physiol. a. Anim. Nutr. 87:66-74.