The tortoises will roam a 16.5-acre pen in an 'essential step' to reestablishing a wild population.
SUSAN MONTOYA BRYANENGLE, N.M. — While the average lifespan of North America’s largest and most rare tortoise species is unknown, biologists have said it could span upward of a century.
The tortoises usually spend about 85% of the time in their earthen burrows, which in some cases can be about 21 yards long.Shawn Sartorius, a field supervisor with the Fish and Wildlife Service, said the results of the breeding and restoration efforts for the slow-reproducing and long-lived animals will not be known in his lifetime.
Now found only in the grasslands of north-central Mexico, the tortoise once had a much larger range that included the southwestern United States. Fossil records also show it was once present it the southern Great Plains, including parts of Texas and Oklahoma.The wild population in Mexico is thought to consist of fewer than 2,500 tortoises, and experts say threats to the animals are mounting as they are hunted for food and collected as pets.
Absent a willingness by wildlife managers to think more broadly, he said, species like the Bolson tortoise could have a bleak future.“It would seem in a recovery context, historical range should be considered. Prehistoric range sometimes matters too,” he said in an interview. “But most importantly, future range — because recovery is all about righting a wrong, it’s about improving conditions. The future is what is of great relevance to recovery.
So far the ranch, spanning more than 560 square miles is proving to be an ideal spot. The landscape is similar to that where the tortoises are found in Mexico, and work done on the ranch and at the Living Desert Zoo and Gardens in Carlsbad has resulted in more than 400 tortoises being hatched since 2006.
Depending on weather conditions and forage availability, it can take a few years or more for a hatchling to reach just over 4 inches long. They can eventually grow to about 14.5 inches .“Each and every day we’re learning more and more about the Bolson tortoise’s natural history,” Phillips said.
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