Carrying food???

[pawsplus]

This is not something I thought tortoises did. But twice now I have put hibiscus blossoms on one side of Beasley's outdoor pen and then later in the day found their remains in her house, nearly 20 feet away. ??? I don't see how they got there unless she carried them there to eat. Has anyone ever seen that? She's a redfoot and, in my completely unbiased opinion, unusually bright, but this is unfamiliar behavior.

 

[SinLA]

Mine gets food “stuck” in her shell/legs and drags it quite a distance.

 

[Michael Bird]

My Hermann's Tortoise frequently gets a pile of Spring Mix salad to eat in his indoor enclosure. Sometimes he will pick up a leaf and drag it to another part of the enclosure away from the rest of the salad pile. I think it's because he doesn't like that specific type of lettuce and he's moving it out of the way, since that's always the type that is left over after he eats everything else.

 

[Blackdog1714]

My leopard loves walking through his food pile several times before munching so food is spread everywhere

 

[pawsplus]

It would be a long way to go to spread it or get it stuck accidentally, given that the distance is 20 feet! And it happened twice, so not an artifact. I will lurk and see if I can actually see it happening.

 

[wellington]

It most likely got stuck on him or part of it was stuck in his mouth where he couldn't get it.
Not really likely any of them are purposely carrying it away from the pile.

 

[pawsplus]

Her. Yeah, I know it's unlikely, but I've never seen this before, in 25 years, and it happened twice in short succession. I will try to watch her eat and see what is going on--that is hard b/c she always wants to be near me, even if there is food. I have to leave to get her to concentrate on eating!

 

[Yvonne G]

A few of our more seasoned members have an acquaintance from Africa, Tomas Diagne (spelling?). Tomas has told us that sulcata take food into the burrow to save for when food up topside is scarce. @Tom ?????

 

[Maggie3fan]

My Sulcata has to eat inside for months during the winter, and she not only smooshes it flat, she indeed drags her food off to a corner. I think Mary tries or succeeds in moving her food. to hide it

 

[Tom]

This is not something I thought tortoises did. But twice now I have put hibiscus blossoms on one side of Beasley's outdoor pen and then later in the day found their remains in her house, nearly 20 feet away. ??? I don't see how they got there unless she carried them there to eat. Has anyone ever seen that? She's a redfoot and, in my completely unbiased opinion, unusually bright, but this is unfamiliar behavior.

I think this is likely by accident, and its possible that a bird or a rodent did it too. My tortoises regularly walk through their food and spread it all over. Many times I have seen them walking around with food stuck on their legs, on top of the carapace, or dangling from their mouths.

I have never seen a tortoise deliberately move food, but Yvonne is correct in her recollection of what Tomas told me. I never saw any of my sulcatas do that, and I never found any food or vegetation down their burrows.

 

[pawsplus]

I agree it's unlikely. The flowers were in her house, though, so not a bird, and not a rodent either (she is only out during the day and no rats around here that I have seen--I can't imagine a rat or squirrel would be interested in hibiscus blossoms anyway LOL!). It's a mystery!

 

[Maro2Bear]

Our Sully accidentally drags food around like that too. Happens a lot.