Gopherus agassizii
| Taxonomy | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scientific Name: | Gopherus agassizii | ||||
| Common name: | Mojave desert tortoise | ||||
| Family: | Testudinidae | Minor Group: | Reptile | Major Group: | Vertebrate Animal |
| Rank and Status | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Global Rank: | G3 | Endemic: | No | NNHP Track Status: | At-Risk List |
| Subnational (State) Rank: | S2S3 | Sand Dunes: | No | USESA Status: | LT: Listed threatened |
| Native Status: | Native | Wetland: | No |
| Other Agency Status | Status | Last Updated | Status Comments |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bureau of Land Management - Nevada | Sensitive | 2011 list | |
| Bureau of Land Management - Nevada | Sensitive | BLM Nevada Sensitive Species List dated 2017-10-01 | |
| US Forest Service - Region 4 (Intermountain) | Threatened | USFS list, Jan 2015 update | |
| State of Nevada Protected | Nevada State Emblems | Declared 1989 | |
| State of Nevada Protected | Threatened Reptiles NAC 503.080.2 | ||
| Nevada Wildlife Action Plan - 2012 | Species of Conservation Priority | ||
| Nevada Wildlife Action Plan - 2005 | Species of Conservation Priority | ||
| International Union for Conservation of Nature | Vulnerable | ||
| CCVI Score | Presumed Stable | Conf. VH. |
| Distribution (NV Counties) |
|---|
Status: Confident or certain
| Clark | Esmeralda | Lincoln | Nye |
| Summary Occurrence Data | |
|---|---|
| Occurrence Count: | 445 |
| Total Observed Area (hectares): | 518 |
| Maximum Known Elevation (m): | 1454 |
| Minimum Known Elevation (m): | 198 |
| Links |
|---|
| Gopherus agassizii data at NatureServe |
| Gopherus agassizii photos and data at Encyclopedia of Life |
| Character Abstract | |
|---|---|
| Identification Comments: | |
| Subspecies Comments: | |
| Food Habits: | Eats a wide variety of herbaceous vegetation, particularly grasses and the flowers of annual plants. They also forage on perennial grasses, woody perennials, cacti, and non-native species such as red brome and red-stem filaree (USFWS 2008). |
| Phenology Comments: | |
| Reproduction Comments: | Sexual maturity reached between 13 and 20 years. Low reproductive rates. The number of eggs as well as the number of clutches produced in a season is dependent on a variety of factors including environment, habitat, availability of forage and drinking water, and physiological condition. Success rate of clutches has proven difficult to measure, but predation appears to play an important role in clutch failure (USFWS 2008). |
| Migration Mobility: | |
| Habitat Comments: | Occupies a variety of habitats from flats and slopes dominated by creosote bush scrub at lower elevations to rocky slopes in blackbrush and juniper woodland ecotones (transition zone) at higher elevations. Requires soils that are friable enough for digging burrows, but firm enough so that burrows do not collapse (USFWS 2008). Also uses caliche caves as shelters. |
| Ecology comments: | Long-lived (70-100 yrs) and slow-growing, they reach sexual maturity at 13-20 years. Desert tortoises have low reproductive rates. Much of their life is spent in burrows. In late winter or early spring they emerge from their overwintering burrows and remain active through the fall (USFWS 2008). |
| Version Date: |
 adult individual
Photographer: Glenn Clemmer, Nevada Natural Heritage Program
Photo Date: |
