Specimen image via iDigBio · CC0
Gopherus agassizii
Sign in to saveAlso known as Agassiz’s desert tortoise, desert tortoise, Mojave desert tortoise
species of reptile
In the Vinony graph
Gopherus agassizii appears in Vinony's Critically Endangered Species collection — one of 9,479 entries.
Vinony's link graph records 281 inbound references to Gopherus agassizii, and connects out to Megalochelys, Testudines and Testudinidae.
It is catalogued under topics including ESA threatened species, Fauna listed on CITES Appendix II and Fauna of the Colorado Desert.
Vinony links it to 28 Wikipedia language editions.
Species
Critically EndangeredSPECIES
- KingdomAnimalia
- PhylumChordata
- ClassTestudines
- FamilyTestudinidae
via GBIF · IUCN
Museum specimens
- Specimen records
- 3,277
- With media
- 196
- Family
- Testudinidae
- Collections
- MVZ, MSB
- Recorded in
- United States
Wikidata facts
Show 9 more facts
- taxon rank
- species
- IUCN conservation status
- Critically Endangered
- Commons category
- Gopherus agassizii
- taxon name
- Gopherus agassizii
- taxon common name
- Mojave desert tortoise
- endemic to
- United States
- sequenced genome URL
- www.ensembl.org/Gopherus_agassizii
- diel cycle
- diurnality
- short name
- G. agassizii
Sources (2)
via Wikidata · CC0
~32 min read
Encyclopedic overview
The desert tortoise (Gopherus agassizii) is a species of tortoise in the family Testudinidae. The species is native to the Mojave and Sonoran Deserts of the southwestern United States and northwestern Mexico, and to the Sinaloan thornscrub of northwestern Mexico. G. agassizii is distributed in western Arizona, southeastern California, southern Nevada, and southwestern Utah. The specific name agassizii is in honor of Swiss-American zoologist Jean Louis Rodolphe Agassiz. The desert tortoise is the official state reptile in California and Nevada.
The desert tortoise lives 70 to 80 years on average; it grows slowly and generally has a low reproductive rate. It spends most of its time in burrows, rock shelters, and pallets to regulate body temperature and reduce water loss. It is most active after seasonal rains and is inactive during most of the year. This inactivity helps reduce water loss during hot periods, whereas winter brumation facilitates survival during freezing temperatures and low food availability. Desert tortoises can tolerate water, salt, and energy imbalances on a daily basis, which increases their lifespans.
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Gopherus agassizii” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.