Speckled Tortoise
(Homopus signatus)
Facts
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IUCN NEAR THREATENED (NT)
Facts about this animal
The Namaqualand padloper is the World´s smallest tortoise reaching a maximum carapace length of 11 cm. Females generally grow larger than males. The shell is dorso-ventrally compressed and buttock tubercles are present.
Two subspecies are described. The northern form, the Namaqualand speckled padloper (Homopus signatus signatus), occurs from the Orange River (bordering Namibia) to the Olifant River in the south and from the Atlantic Coast as far inland as Gamoep on the western fringe of the Bushmanland. The Southern speckled padloper (Homopus signatus cafer) is found south of the Olifants River to Piketberg and Citrusdal in the south and Cedarberg in the east. The northern subspecies can be distinguished by a more serrated posterior margin and a slightly different colouration. Whereas the northern subspecies has a light brown coloured carapace with black speckles, splashes and rays, the southern subspecies is not always light brown , but can be orange-red or salmon-pink. The pattern in this subspecies consists of many much finer stipples and only short rays.
The species lives in the rocky and relatively arid succulent and bushveld regions of Little Namaqualand and the western Great Karoo from sea level to 1000 m NN. In the south it occurs also in the northern fringe of the fynbos area. Usually it uses crevices in the rocks as refuge, but is not as bound to specific crevices as the pancake tortoise is. The natural range receives winter rainfall and has dry and hot summers. Whereas the biology and ecology of the southern subspecies is not really known, the main activity season for the northern subspecies is the spring, in which they show an unimodal activity pattern, which changes to a bimodal activity pattern in summer, rsp. reduced activity in summer, which increases in autumn again. During the winter at least the northern subspecies remains inactive.
Egg laying takes place in the spring months. The clutches consist of a single large egg, but at least under human care a female can produce up to four clutches in one season.
Homopus signatus is a herbivorous species that feeds on leaves and flowers of many different plant species. For the northern subspecies at least 11 different feeding plant species have been identified, with Oxalis sp. and Leysera tenella being the most popular ones.
Did you know?
that the speckled tortoise is it the smallest of the world's tortoises? Adults reach a lngth of 9.5 cm oand a body-weight of 140 grams only.
| Factsheet | |
|---|---|
| Class | REPTILIA |
| Order | TESTUDINES |
| Suborder | CRYPTODIRA |
| Family | TESTUDINIDAE |
| Name (Scientific) | Homopus signatus |
| Name (English) | Speckled Tortoise |
| Name (French) | Homopode marqué |
| Name (German) | Gesägte Flachschildkröte |
| Name (Spanish) | Tortuga manchada |
| Local names | Afrikaans: Padloper |
| CITES Status | Appendix II |
| CMS Status | Not listed |
Photo Copyright by
Victor Loehr
Distribution
| Distribution | |
|---|---|
| Range | South Africa |
| Habitat | Dry and rocky area |
| Wild population | Unknown |
| Zoo population | 12 reported to ISIS |
In the Zoo
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How this animal should be transported
For air transport, Container Note 43 of the IATA Live Animals Regulations should be followed.
Find this animal on ZooLex
Photo Copyright by
Victor Loehr
Why do zoos keep this animal
The Speckled Padloper is not kept by many zoos. Although the species is listed as LR only in the IUCN Red List , the small range makes it very vulnerable. Studies have also shown that aridification of the habitat has tremendous impact to the survival of the species. The southern subspecies has been listed by the Turtle Conservation Fund (TCF) among the 25 most endangered chelonian species.
Also for educational purposes the species can be recommended as it represents the world´s smallest tortoise species. Prague Zoo for example exhibits this species next to the huge Galapagos tortoises.
As a small quite active tortoise, this species is also very attractive to visitors and in contrast to the large species of the genus Geochelone the terraria can be smaller and can be nicely decorated as this species is less destructive than larger chelonians. Also a combination with South African lizards (Agamids, Cordylids, Scincids) is possible.
For this species a very active ESF studbook is kept by the Homopus Research Foundation in the Netherlands (Chairman: Victor Loehr). The studbook programme is closely linked with extensive research activities in captivity as well as in the wild. Data resulting from these research projects regarding the ecology of this species are used for improving the conservation activities for this species. More Information can be found on www.homopus.org.
How this animal should be kept
A terrarium with a size of about 1 m² should be provided for two fully grown tortoises. Males and females can be kept together all year round, but males should not be mixed with other males as this results in fighting.
The climatic cycle can be switched to the northern hemisphere with hot and arid summers and cool and moist winters. The day phase should last 13-14 hours in summer and 9-10 hours in winter. Raining season falls in the winter time and the terrarium should be sprayed about 3-4 times weekly, whereas in summer time it should be kept drier. In summer temperatures should reach 30-35 °C, in winter 20-25 °C. Basking spots should provide even higher tempartures of 40-50 °C at least in the summertime, but can be switched off in winter times. The night temperature should drop distinctly below the day temperatures but should never fall below 5 °C.
The floor should be covered with fine gravel or course sand. Crevices between rocks or other hiding places such as roots or grass tussocks should be provided at all times.
Food consists mainly of herbs (dandelion, clover, coughwort, plantain) or endive and chicory salad. In summer chopped hay should be offered. Food should be given about 3-5 times weekly depending on the season, but even during the rather inactive periods (hot summers, winter season) it should be provided. Water should be provided at all times. Especially juvenile animals are sensitive to dehydration and need to be kept more humid than adults and soaked several times weekly.