It has risen!

"DipodomysDeserti" (dipodomysdeserti) 04/21/2019 at 14:49 • Filed to: None

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My second Sonoran D esert tortoise came out of rumination today. It’s been hiding for the last few months. These guys are endemic to the Sonoran Desert of Arizona and northern Mexico and are considered a threatened species. Their populations have declined by 80% since 1980 mainly due to habitat destruction and the drying out of the Sonoran Desert (we are in a 25+ year drought). This guy could outlive me, so my kids are charged with taking care of ours when I’m gone. My other one is about 50% larger than this one.

Goggles Pizzano > DipodomysDeserti 04/21/2019 at 15:17

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Your post and words made me think of a clip I posted to Oppo not too long ago. If you missed it:

Spridget > DipodomysDeserti 04/21/2019 at 15:28

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Are turtles/tortoises particularly affectionate pets? I would assume not, but haven’t owned one. I’ve also heard these guys are pretty needy;  is that true?

DipodomysDeserti > Spridget 04/21/2019 at 16:30

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I can’t speak for turtles, but these guys definitely get comfortable with people. My kids handle them and feed them lettuce  by hand. These guys live in the desert for near a century without any help, so they aren’t particularly needy. They really just need weeds to eat and dirt to dig in.

ITA97, now with more Jag @ opposite-lock.com > DipodomysDeserti 04/21/2019 at 16:35

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Neat.  We always had a bunch of box turtles in the yard growing up.  These seem neat, but I'm not sure how they would like the colder winters at our altitude.

xc90v8/I4 :( > DipodomysDeserti 04/21/2019 at 17:45

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Nice! We have 9 at home. 5 of them homemade by accident. The oldest must be close to 60 now, the youngest turning 2 this summer. But just normal greek ones.

How old are yours? And how do they live?

DipodomysDeserti > ITA97, now with more Jag @ opposite-lock.com 04/21/2019 at 18:49

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They would not do well in higher altitudes. They only live in the Sonoran which stays warm year round.

DipodomysDeserti > xc90v8/I4 :( 04/21/2019 at 18:51

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I’m guessing they’re about ten years old. We got them from a friend whose relative went to prison. There’s a lot of laws in Arizona regulating endemic species, so I’m a bit worried about them procreating.

xc90v8/I4 :( > DipodomysDeserti 04/21/2019 at 19:10

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Yeah I’m starting to worry about incest now. There’s a girl and two boys that could be parents to the 5 kids and i’m not sure how/if they are related. So i don’t think the next generation should be breeding. But they shouldn’t be separated and live alone either. So I need to read up on that.