Testudo marginata

Marginated Tortoise

Distribution: Greece.

Empire Stock: CBR.

Size: Up to 30 cm.

Habitat: Dry scrub woodlands.

Diet: I feed ours Mazuri Tortoise Diet, Romaine, dandelion, and some fruits such as strawberries and cantaloupe. Edible Plants.

Sexing: Males have longer thicker tails than females.

Breeding:

Notes:

Care Sheets: WCT

Some adults from another collection. I am using this photo since our animals are younger and don't yet show the degree of flaring that these exhibit.

These are around eight months old. The triangular dark markings on the plastron help differentiate hatchlings from Hermann's and Spur-thighed Tortoises. The carapace is still very light at this age.

This is one of our subadults, perhaps five years old, and the carapace is already much darker.

Suggested Reading

Fritz, U., P. Široký, H. Kami, M. Wink. 2005. Environmentally caused dwarfism or a valid species - Is Testudo weissingeri Bour, 1996 a distinct  evolutionary lineage? New evidence from mitochondrial and nuclear genomic markers. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 37: 389-401.