SREL Reprint #3286

Habitat Characteristics of North American Tortoises

Kenneth E. Nussear1 and Tracey D. Tuberville2

1US Geological Survey, Biological Resources Discipline, Henderson, Nevada
2University of Georgia, Savannah River Ecology Lab, Aiken, South Carolina

Abstract: North American tortoises are distributed in semiarid and temperate deserts and coastal regions of the southern United States and Mexico (Bury and Germano 1994). The five species currently recognized each have specific habitat requirements, which they fulfill through their selection of, and interaction with, unique habitat constituents. Below, we discuss the physiographic and geological associations, perennial and annual vegetation components, shelter sites, and climatic conditions associated with the species' habitats, as well as the potential threats to their habitat.

SREL Reprint #3286

Nussear, K. E. and T. D. Tuberville. 2014. Habitat Characteristics of North American Tortoises. pp. 77-84 In: D. C. Rostal, E. D. McCoy, and H. R. Mushinsky (Eds.). Biology and Conservation of North American Tortoises. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, MD.

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