AnimalLady
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Sep 2, 2015
- Messages
- 1,136
Gotcha, and I know exactly what you mean, my cherry head isn't cherry headed at all. He is "salmon headed" lolOh no, not at all. There are certainly differences between the northern forms, the so called cherry-heads, the large Chaco animals, the Mato Grasso tortoises and so on. I'm fairly certain there are at least four distinct subspecies of red-foot tortoises that are simply awaiting official designation.
But my objected is to a name that hypes a trait that not all animals of the group possess with the result being confusion. For instance, most cherry-heads could just as easily be called 'orange-heads' because they have bright orange colors on their faces. Others (actually a great many) have heads that are distinctly coral colored. But then some keepers insist that only the very red faced, or red headed animals are 'true' cherry-heads and that any tortoise without that trait--even though it possesses all of the other identifying criteria of that form--are hybrids. Or mutts, or whatever.
Also, the name cherry-head was coined by a couple of employees at Pet Farm in the early 1980s for one reason and one reason only: To hype sales and drive up prices.