SREL Reprint #2595

Winter survey of a gopher tortoise population in South Carolina

Tracey D. Tuberville and Michael E. Dorcas

Savannah River Ecology Laboratory, P.O. Drawer E, Aiken, South Carolina 29802 USA

Introduction: Gopher tortoises (Gopherus polyphemus) are large fossorial chelonians that construct extensive underground burrows throughout their range in the southeastern USA (Louisiana to South Carolina). Besides serving as refugia for gopher tortoises, these burrows, which can remain intact for decades (Guyer and Hermann, 1997), provide habitat for many other animals (Jackson and Milstrey, 1989; Guyer and Bailey, 1993). Consequently, the gopher tortoise has often been referred to as a keystone species (Eisenberg, 1983; Means and Grow, 1985). The gopher tortoise is protected by state regulations throughout its range and is listed by the federal government as "threatened" in the western portion of its range (USFWS, 1987). The IUCN (1996) considers the gopher tortoise "vulnerable" to extinction. Because of habitat alteration, gopher tortoises now occur primarily in disjunct populations (Auffenberg and Franz, 1982; Mushinsky and McCoy, 1994). Most research on gopher tortoise ecology has been conducted in Florida, where the species is most abundant, and in the western portion of its range, where it is federally protected. Relatively little is known about gopher tortoise ecology in the northeastern portion of its range (i.e., South Carolina). . . .

SREL Reprint #2595

Tuberville, T. D. and M. E. Dorcas. 2001. Winter survey of a gopher tortoise population in South Carolina. Chelonian Conservation and Biology. 4:182-186.

This information was provided by the University of Georgia's Savannah River Ecology Laboratory (srel.uga.edu).