One of the 41 turtles and tortoises on WAnimals
Reptiles · Testudines · Testudinidae
Radiated Tortoise
Astrochelys radiata
It faces an extremely high risk of imminent extinction in the wild. See full glossary
The radiated tortoise is a land tortoise endemic to southern Madagascar, with a strongly domed shell decorated with a pattern of yellow lines radiating from the centre of each scute. It is one of the most beautiful tortoises in the world and also one of the most threatened: collection for the pet trade and for meat has decimated it within a few decades.
Weight
10 kg – 16 kg
Size
30 cm – 40 cm
Lifespan
100 years
Diet
Herbivore
Feeds mainly on plants.
Activity
Diurnal
Active mainly during the day.
Social structure
Solitary
Lives and hunts alone, joining others only to breed.
Sighting difficulty
Very hard
Fun facts
- Its pattern of yellow lines radiating from the centre of each scute is unique and has been precisely the cause of its misfortune: it is one of the tortoises most sought after by the illegal pet trade.
- In 2018 more than ten thousand live radiated tortoises were seized in a single house in Madagascar, one of the largest wildlife seizures in history.
- It can live more than a hundred years: Tu'i Malila, a radiated tortoise supposedly given by Captain Cook to the royal family of Tonga, died in 1965 aged at least 188.
Life cycle & biology
- Skeleton type
- Vertebrate - internal bony skeleton with a shell (reptile)
- Habitat & environment
- Spiny thicket and dry Didiereaceae forest of southern and south-western Madagascar
- Sexual maturity
- 15 years
- Gestation / incubation
- 200 days of incubation
- Litter / clutch size
- 5 eggs
Sources consulted: https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Astrochelys_radiata
Where to watch it
Parks and dive sites where this species has been documented.
Related species
Other species in the catalogue with the most in common with Radiated Tortoise — same habitat, park, country, tags or family.
Burmese Star Tortoise
Geochelone platynota
Pancake Tortoise
Malacochersus tornieri
Verreaux's Sifaka
Propithecus verreauxi
Greater Hedgehog Tenrec
Setifer setosus
Madagascar Tree Boa
Sanzinia madagascariensis
Common Tortoise
Testudo graeca
How to help
The radiated tortoise is classified as critically endangered. Organizations such as UICN, WWF y Wildlife Conservation Society work specifically on its conservation and that of its habitat; looking into their programs is a good starting point if you want to get involved.
It's documented in 1 real protected area — part of why protecting these places matters for its conservation.
Keep exploring
Based on what we already know about radiated tortoise.
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