Gopher Tortoise (Gopherus polyphemus)
Despite being one of the largest, if not the largest, continuous stretches of habitat and presence of a decent amount of burrows, Gopher Tortoises seem to be more difficult to observe in the fall line sandhills of Georgia than in appropriate habitat further south. This unique swath of sandhill halfway to the Blue Ridge mountains from the coast is the inland-most extent of the range of many species of plants and animals. In my opinion, and I'm sure very few will disagree, it is one of the most precious and iconic locations in the state. Truely, the crown jewel of Georgia's biodiversity. Unfortunately, between the destructive locals, fire supression, and Georgia Power's best efforts to turn the entire place into a solar farm (Clean energy? Absolutely not.) the fall line sandhills are far from a safe haven for the incredibly sensitive plants and animals that inhabit them. This federally protected Gopher Tortoise almost certainly fell victim to malicious and senseless killing in one way or another (car or weapon one, the other side of the shell was completely caved in but I saved you the gore by using this angle), mortally wonded and left to die a slow and painful death in the road. This is only one small example of the wanton destruction that goes on throughout rural areas of the United States, directly attributed to cruelty, selfishness, and ignorance of humans inhabiting these areas. Fortunately, these times are not entirely dark for the region, as Georgia DNR has done an excellent job of acquiring and managing a number of properties in the area providing some degree of protection to the irreplacable biodiversity. Additionally, I often joke about The Sand People being some sort of primitive tribe of violent and insane recluses, but the truth is it seems a good portion of them really are decent people, like the man who owns the property this turtle was attempting to cross the road from. He saw us taking pictures and came up to see what was going on, and seemed heart broken to see one of his local tortoises in this state. He commutes almost 3 hours to Atlanta daily for work, but choses to live in the area because he loves it so much. Similarly, a few weeks back a old weathered local expressed frustration over a large DOR Timber Rattlesnake we found nearby. People do care, and I urge anyone who can to take every oppurtunity to further educate the people living in sensitive areas who will listen about the irreplacable nature of what they share their yards with. In turn, maybe they will pass on that knowledge to their kids and the vicious cycle of ignorance and fear will begin to dissipate.
Gopher Tortoise (Gopherus polyphemus)
Despite being one of the largest, if not the largest, continuous stretches of habitat and presence of a decent amount of burrows, Gopher Tortoises seem to be more difficult to observe in the fall line sandhills of Georgia than in appropriate habitat further south. This unique swath of sandhill halfway to the Blue Ridge mountains from the coast is the inland-most extent of the range of many species of plants and animals. In my opinion, and I'm sure very few will disagree, it is one of the most precious and iconic locations in the state. Truely, the crown jewel of Georgia's biodiversity. Unfortunately, between the destructive locals, fire supression, and Georgia Power's best efforts to turn the entire place into a solar farm (Clean energy? Absolutely not.) the fall line sandhills are far from a safe haven for the incredibly sensitive plants and animals that inhabit them. This federally protected Gopher Tortoise almost certainly fell victim to malicious and senseless killing in one way or another (car or weapon one, the other side of the shell was completely caved in but I saved you the gore by using this angle), mortally wonded and left to die a slow and painful death in the road. This is only one small example of the wanton destruction that goes on throughout rural areas of the United States, directly attributed to cruelty, selfishness, and ignorance of humans inhabiting these areas. Fortunately, these times are not entirely dark for the region, as Georgia DNR has done an excellent job of acquiring and managing a number of properties in the area providing some degree of protection to the irreplacable biodiversity. Additionally, I often joke about The Sand People being some sort of primitive tribe of violent and insane recluses, but the truth is it seems a good portion of them really are decent people, like the man who owns the property this turtle was attempting to cross the road from. He saw us taking pictures and came up to see what was going on, and seemed heart broken to see one of his local tortoises in this state. He commutes almost 3 hours to Atlanta daily for work, but choses to live in the area because he loves it so much. Similarly, a few weeks back a old weathered local expressed frustration over a large DOR Timber Rattlesnake we found nearby. People do care, and I urge anyone who can to take every oppurtunity to further educate the people living in sensitive areas who will listen about the irreplacable nature of what they share their yards with. In turn, maybe they will pass on that knowledge to their kids and the vicious cycle of ignorance and fear will begin to dissipate.