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Photographed the Gopher Tortoise strolling back to it's burrow at the Bok Tower Gardens on Iron Mountain near Lake Wales in Polk County Florida U.S.A.
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(Gopherus polyphemus) The gopher tortoise is a species of turtle in the family Testudinidae and is native to the southeastern United States. The gopher tortoise is seen as a keystone species because it digs burrows that provide shelter for at least 360 other animal species.
The gopher tortoise is a species of turtle in the family Testudinidae. The species is native to the southeastern United States. The gopher tortoise is seen as a keystone species because it digs burrows that provide shelter for at least 360 other animal species. Wikipedia
Found this one along the Withlachoochee Trail . He stopped to pose on his way back to his burrow in the ground.
Happy Textural (Turtle )Tuesday!
This beautiful pattern is on the back of a young Gopher Tortoise. They can live for more than 40 years and grow to approx. 12 inches. The Gopher Tortoise is threatened by predation and habitat destruction, and can be found ranging through Florida USA, and other southern states.
(Gopherus polyphemus)
more info on the gopher tortoise in Wikipedia :
Gopher Tortoise
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it's the tortoise way... or the highway (and yes… I gave it an escort out of danger)
Brooksville Florida
These were very common in the sandy soil all around the beach houses in New Smyrna Beach, and some burrows were over a foot wide to accommodate their large size.
iNaturalist link www.inaturalist.org/observations/167109048
The gopher tortoise (Gopherus polyphemus) is a species of tortoise in the family Testudinidae. The species is native to the southeastern United States. The gopher tortoise is seen as a keystone species because it digs burrows that provide shelter for at least 360 other animal species. G. polyphemus is threatened by predation and habitat destruction. Habitat degradation is the primary reason that the gopher tortoise is listed as vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, but they are considered threatened in some states while they are endangered in others.[4]
The gopher tortoise is a representative of the genus Gopherus, which contains the only tortoises native to North America.
Jenny Pansing photos
Florida designated the endangered gopher tortoise (Gopherus polyphemus) as the official state tortoise in 2008 (Senate Bill 1486). Florida recognizes two other reptiles as state symbols (American alligator and loggerhead sea turtle). All State Reptiles.
The gopher tortoise is a land based tortoise, preferring to make their homes in the high and dry sand pine scrub areas of the state. They dig burrows in the ground that can go as deep as 10 feet and 40 feet in length. These burrows are important not only to the tortoise but are also used by over 350 other species including other state residents such as the indigo snake, gopher frog and gopher cricket. On a sunny day you will find gopher tortoises out and about feeding on some of their favorite grasses and small plants
A major threat to our gopher tortoises is vehicle traffic, as they often try to cross roads to find new areas to feed or dig burrows.
I found this one at Walk In The Water Wildlife Management Area in Lake Wales, Polk County, Florida.
Photographed the Gopher Tortoise on one of the Lakeland Highlands Scrub trails located in the City of Lakeland Polk County Florida U.S.A.
In Florida, the Gopher Tortoise is listed as Threatened. Both the tortoise and its burrow are protected under state law. The burrow is integral to the tortoise’s survival. It provides shelter from the sun, stable temperature and relative humidity, protection from predators, a site for laying eggs under the sandy soil at the burrow mouth, and it is a crucial refuge for the tortoise and other species that are adapted to the fires that naturally occur in the tortoise’s native ecosystem. Their burrows are widely used by other species throughout the ecosystem, and they include nearly 400 mammals, reptiles, amphibians, insects and birds, such as the Burrowing Owl. Gopher Tortoises are a keystone species with a pivotal role to play in their native community. Copyright © Kim Toews/All Rights Reserved
This little cutie is only about 2 1/2 to 3 inches long. It came out from under a bush, saw us, and went back in.
Thanks so much for the visit!
This endangered tortoise appears to be on a mission as it kicks up some sand.
Thanks so much for the visit!
One of the large Gopher Tortoises that periodically comes to visit with me and enjoy the tasty delights in my lawn. Nom nom nom.
(All Tortoises are Turtles, but not all Turtles are Tortoises.)
Crossed paths with a cute (albeit grumpy-looking) juvenile Gopher Tortoise at a local park. He/she was busy munching away on greenery and was relatively unphased by my presence, pausing only for a second as I knelt on the ground with my camera. I snapped a handful of photos and quietly observed from a distance. And before I moved on, I made sure to tell him/her how cute they were. 😍
The Gopher Tortoise (Gopherus polyphemus) is a native species to Florida and is protected by law. Although it doesn’t happen often because human development encroaches on their habitat, it’s always a delight to see these creatures in the wild. 🐢
Port Salerno, FL | Aug 2024
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in its characteristic burrow. Conservation status is considered to be vulnerable.
Oatland Island Wildlife Center, near Savannah GA
iNaturalist link www.inaturalist.org/observations/110312015
Jenny Pansing photos
How about a new little gopher tortoise to start out the new year. Not sure how old this guy is, but it was the youngest one I have ever seen. #bestofsunshinestate #natgeoyourshot #pureflorida
Date: April 15, 2021
Location: Guana Tolomato Matanzas National Estuarine Research Reserve - Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida (Saint John's County)
A gopher tortoise exits its sandy burrow on the leeward side of a beach dune.
City of St. Augustine Beach (Crescent Beach), Florida, USA.
2 September 2025.
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🔥 Warning signs:
☞ "Do not feed gopher tortoises or dispose of trash near burrows. Species protected by federal law."
☞ "It is a violation to intentionally take, harass, wound, kill any species designated as endangered, threatened, or 'of special concern.' Violators may be guilty of a third-degree felony in Florida."
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🐢 Herpetological notes:
☞ "Gopherus polyphemus — commonly known the gopher tortoise — is a species of tortoise in the family Testudinidae. The species is native to the southeastern United States. It is the state tortoise of Florida and the state reptile of Georgia.
☞ The gopher tortoise is a terrestrial reptile, dark brown to gray-black in overall color, with a yellow plastron [bottom shell]. The length of the carapace [upper section of the exoskeleton] ranges from 6 to 16 inches (15 to 40 cm); its body mass ranges 4.4 to 13.2 pounds (2 to 6 kg).
☞ Gopher tortoises live in extensive subterranean burrows — 8 to 12 feet deep (2½ to 3⅔ m) and up to 40 feet long (12 m) — in dry upland habitats, including longleaf pine sandhills, xeric oak hammocks, scrubland, pine flatwoods, dry prairies, and coastal dunes.
☞ The gopher tortoise is a keystone species because its burrows provide shelter for at least 360 other animal species, including indigo snakes, Florida mice, gopher frogs, and burrowing owls. The International Union for Conservation of Nature's Red List of Threatened Species lists the gopher tortoise as 'vulnerable,' primarily because it is threatened by predation and habitat destruction.
☞ Gopher tortoises can live more than 40 years. The oldest known living gopher tortoise is Gus (age 103), living at the Nova Scotia Museum of Natural History in Halifax."
— Wikipedia.
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📷 Photographer's note:
During the week we were visiting, this tortoise would 'greet' us every morning as we walked down to the beach, and most evenings when we returned. We called him Teddy.
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Date: April 15, 2021
Location: Guana Tolomato Matanzas National Estuarine Research Reserve - Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida (Saint John's County)
gopher tortoise (Gopherus polyphemus) is a species of tortoise in the family Testudinidae. It is native to the southeastern United States.
Gopher tortoises are long-lived reptiles that occupy upland habitat throughout Florida including forests, pastures, and yards. They dig deep burrows for shelter and forage on low-growing plants. Gopher tortoises share their burrows with more than 350 other species, and are therefore referred to as a keystone species. In Florida, the gopher tortoise is listed as Threatened.
I put a fun little video of my “neighbor “ eating weeds in my yard. Here on my YouTube channel. youtu.be/0acHAXwVCcU
It won't be long before gopher tortoises in Central Florida are resigned to their burrows during cooler weather. This individual has been known to my family going back to the early 90s. Older than Flickr! He's probably older than me, too... Happy Friday!
Gopher Tortoise
The Gopher Tortoise (Gopherus polyphemus) is a species of tortoise in the family Testudinidae. The species is native to the southeastern United States. The Gopher Tortoise is seen as a keystone species because it digs burrows that provide shelter for at least 360 other animal species. G. polyphemus is threatened by predation and habitat destruction.
The Gopher Tortoise is a representative of the genus Gopherus, which contains the only tortoises native to North America and the box turtle, which resembles a tortoise but is actually a kind of freshwater turtle adapted to land. The Gopher Tortoise is the state reptile of Georgia and the state tortoise of Florida.
For more info: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gopher_tortoise
Leicaflex SL
50mm Summicron
Fomapan 100
Rodinal 1:100
60 mins (30 secs agitation, 2 inversions at 20 & 40 mins)
Gopher Tortoise, Deland, FL
You can only imagine Steve's delight that not only was the tortoise in the road, but now I was down there too taking a photo while a car was coming.
Not sure where this big lad was headed, but he was very determined to get there. Didn't even retreat inside his shell when I moved him out of the way of traffic. These guys can be surprisingly tenacious. We've watched them battle each other over burrows or females, ramming each other repeatedly, trying to flip their opponent over. Such characters, I have a huge soft spot for them.
Originating 60 million years ago, it’s one of the oldest living species on the planet and the only native North American tortoise species east of the Mississippi River. The gopher tortoise range is from southern South Carolina through the southern half of Georgia, into Florida.
Gopher tortoises are a keystone species, meaning they have an outsized impact on their environment. This impact is largely due to their burrows. Gopher tortoises have large, elephantine hind limbs and flattened, shovel-like forelimbs that are uniquely designed to dig burrows up to 40 feet long and 10 feet wide. At least 300 other species also use their burrows, including rare species such as the Eastern indigo snake, gopher frog, Florida mouse, and hundreds of rodents and invertebrates.
Marco Island Florida.
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There are two tunnels in the Gopher Tortoise habitat, one on either side. I can't help but wonder if they somehow use one side to enter and the other to exit to avoid roadblocks? Or If they just use which ever is closest for their comings and goings?
Considering the size of the tunnel opening is just big enough for one of them they must have traffic jams all the time.🐢🐢🐢
Seen at Dauset Trails Nature Center.