Whit
New Member
A large Sulcata Tortoise has been wandering through my neighborhood this week in Orlando, FL. (College Park area.)
If you think he/she may be yours, please see photos & videos at https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B7QG510qoRdFMVU0Zld6WnRMYU0, and contact me at [email protected] for more info. (I may not check this post regularly, so please email rather than commenting here.)
My neighbors originally misidentified our visitor as a native Gopher Tortoise, but upon doing some research, I’m nearly positive it is a Sulcata. (Much too large to be a Gopher Tortoise, and the carapace looks like a Sulcata.) We obviously don’t know much about tortoises, but I am quite familiar with sea turtles ... so I’m concerned about this handsome roaming giant.
At a guess, I’d say the carapace is about 2.5’ long (or about the diameter of a 2-person bistro table). He/she doesn’t appear injured — walks fine, no visible damage to shell or skin, and easily retracts into shell. The tortoise hungrily noshes on the fruits and veggies my neighbors and I have offered, but doesn’t seem interested in dishes of water. We get hissed at if we get too close while it is eating, but it otherwise allows us to approach.
If you think this may be your lost tortoise, or if you have the means to responsibly rescue and rehome it, please contact me at [email protected]. I do not have the means to capture or home such a large tortoise, but I can let you know where it has been seen and alert you upon the next appearance.
If you have advice about what to safely feed this beautiful tortoise, please let me know. I cannot leave food out due to very active raccoon and squirrel populations, but I’m happy to feed it whenever I spot it in the yard.
If you think he/she may be yours, please see photos & videos at https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B7QG510qoRdFMVU0Zld6WnRMYU0, and contact me at [email protected] for more info. (I may not check this post regularly, so please email rather than commenting here.)
My neighbors originally misidentified our visitor as a native Gopher Tortoise, but upon doing some research, I’m nearly positive it is a Sulcata. (Much too large to be a Gopher Tortoise, and the carapace looks like a Sulcata.) We obviously don’t know much about tortoises, but I am quite familiar with sea turtles ... so I’m concerned about this handsome roaming giant.
At a guess, I’d say the carapace is about 2.5’ long (or about the diameter of a 2-person bistro table). He/she doesn’t appear injured — walks fine, no visible damage to shell or skin, and easily retracts into shell. The tortoise hungrily noshes on the fruits and veggies my neighbors and I have offered, but doesn’t seem interested in dishes of water. We get hissed at if we get too close while it is eating, but it otherwise allows us to approach.
If you think this may be your lost tortoise, or if you have the means to responsibly rescue and rehome it, please contact me at [email protected]. I do not have the means to capture or home such a large tortoise, but I can let you know where it has been seen and alert you upon the next appearance.
If you have advice about what to safely feed this beautiful tortoise, please let me know. I cannot leave food out due to very active raccoon and squirrel populations, but I’m happy to feed it whenever I spot it in the yard.
