Need help in identifying this tortoise

turtlemanfla88

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It looks like a leopard tortoise. It looks like Pardalis Pardalis not Pardalis Babcocki. can you measure him and show a picture of his plastron. I could be wrong ,but all the old Pardalis Pardalis lose most of their color and Babcocki keep a lot of their color with age.
 

Neal

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It's an Indian star Kelly. The radiating lines on the third costal scute on the left side are more consistent with Indian and the head appears to be as well. I would be surprised if it was a burmese, but find it unlikely that someone would stumble upon an old burmese in this condition from their uncle's garden without knowing exactly what it was.

There's a sizable captive Indian star population in the UK.
 

Launcelot

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It's undoubtedly a very old star tortoise, not a leopard tortoise.

Could have been injured somehow, I highly doubt the out layer of the shell would have just fallen off. Whatever happened, it appears to be a long time ago unless the picture is distorted somehow.

Yes as @Yvonne G pointed out, someone or something must have tried to kill him. Most probably some one.

I wouldn't put him with your other tortoises until after you quarantine him. For him I would do about a year as he probably has a weakened immune system. It would also be a good idea to get a stool sample to check for parasites. As far as which tortoise he is you can check by what size he is. stars usually don't grow more than 10 to 12 inches, unless it's a Sri lanken. So if he's bigger than that most likely a leopard and leopards and stars shouldn't be mixed together.

If you do keep him he does have to be quarantined for a period of time. Some say 1 yr, I'm closer to 6 months. BUT...It's never a good idea to mix species. Each carries it's own pathogens that are like dormant in them, but put them with any other species and those same pathogens could possibly kill the other species. So it would be my suggestion as it's heritage is in doubt that he be set up by himself for a long time, and cared for as if he was a Leo. Good luck, that's quite a find...

Understood. I'll continue to keep him separately. I took him to a vet as he had this breathing issue but not necessarily checked for parasites. I'll do that next time. This one is only 9 inches. Thank you both for your suggestions.


Thank you...
 

Launcelot

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Could you post a picture of its plastron(underside)? How long has your great uncle had this specimen?

It looks like a leopard tortoise. It looks like Pardalis Pardalis not Pardalis Babcocki. can you measure him and show a picture of his plastron. I could be wrong ,but all the old Pardalis Pardalis lose most of their color and Babcocki keep a lot of their color with age.

Here you are:

Back.jpg

I'm not sure for how long he was there. I've never seen this one before.
He is only 9 inches.
 

tortadise

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It's an Indian star Kelly. The radiating lines on the third costal scute on the left side are more consistent with Indian and the head appears to be as well. I would be surprised if it was a burmese, but find it unlikely that someone would stumble upon an old burmese in this condition from their uncle's garden without knowing exactly what it was.

There's a sizable captive Indian star population in the UK.
Yes indeed. It's head and scales were so smooth, and yes the radiating (what is left of it) definitely indicates Indian. As does the size now. That's a big male for sure.
 

phebe121

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The little shell on him looks lime a star i have leopards and its not like that i think its a star
 

turtlemanfla88

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It is a star thanks for showing the plastron. As old as that animal is I wonder if there are any others survivors in this country with the same blood line?. Just a thought.
 

Launcelot

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Thank you all for your comments. I spoke with my grand uncle's care taker and he could not recall having this sort of a tortoise. Very strange, I'm beginning to think that this one was not a resident there and was a runaway. This is countryside, it is possible for a tortoise of his size to travel undetected.
 

HLogic

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My 2¢... Indian Star. Burn victim 5 - 10 or more years ago, not severe burns but sufficient. The old scutes are beginning to be shed (chipped off) and the new scutes, regenerated because of the damage to the cutaneous tissue immediately below the scutes, is now showing. (ref: Mader, 2nd ed.)

Keeping the animal in a warm humid environment may help in the removal of the old scutes. I would not attempt to assist this process manually without veterinary intervention. It may be more rapid if the tort is in a habitat with low-hanging scrub/bushes that would *slowly* abrade the old scute material.
 

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