Sand

[Reptilony]

If desert species live in deserts (on sand) wouldn't they get sand impactions all the time?

 

[TechnoCheese]

There are very few species(if any at all, but I’m sure there have to be a few)that live on sand, and almost all tortoises that are labeled as desert species are no exception. By your description of a desert, Antarctica is full of sand. If something is a desert, it just means that it’s barren, not that it’s full of sand.
For example, sulcatas. They live in grasslands, but they are still(for some people)a desert species.

 

[Reptilony]

Sorry I should have said "desert of sand" haha. I was wandering if maybe some species might be somehow adapted to eating a bit of sand. Doesn't what we call the desert tortoise live actually on sand deserts? Even in places where it's mostly dirt there is some spots that are full of sand. I can imagine a tortoise eating some plants whole with the roots full of dirt, sand and small rocks attached to it. Do you think sand might sometimes be an issue even for wild tortoise?

 

[pguinpro]

Sorry I should have said "desert of sand" haha. I was wandering if maybe some species might be somehow adapted to eating a bit of sand. Doesn't what we call the desert tortoise live actually on sand deserts? Even in places where it's mostly dirt there is some spots that are full of sand. I can imagine a tortoise eating some plants whole with the roots full of dirt, sand and small rocks attached to it. Do you think sand might sometimes be an issue even for wild tortoise?

Found this picture of a wild sulcata! Watch out! Anyways looks like fine dirt to me not sand but I could be wrong I have not been to that part of Africa and I don't think anyone on here has been either.

 

[TechnoCheese]

I looked it up, and even desert tortoises live on more of a packed down sandy soil instead of loose sand.
I found this about Russian tortoises, and maybe the same applies to a species living on sand?
“Wild Russian tortoises also graze on low-growing vegetation; they don’t eat directly off the substrate as they often do in captivity. “

 

[Reptilony]

I looked it up, and even desert tortoises live on more of a packed down sandy soil instead of loose sand.
I found this about Russian tortoises, and maybe the same applies to a species living on sand?
“Wild Russian tortoises also graze on low-growing vegetation; they don’t eat directly off the substrate as they often do in captivity. “

Interesting...Maybe wild ones intentionally try not to eat what the plant grow in while captive ones don't have that habit because we put everything in terra cotta dish...

 

[Maro2Bear]

I’m sure @Tom has a friend that lives in Sudan and often provides insight on the conditions there where many Sulcata originated from.

Here in North America, specifically Florida, i have personally watched Florida Gopher tortoises digging and living and eating in sandy conditions.

Here are some pix of what we observed..

https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/wild-gopher-tortoise-pics.164922/#post-1591519

 

[ascott]

If desert species live in deserts (on sand) wouldn't they get sand impactions all the time?

In the wild tortoise walk and take bites from the plant and do not eat food that is cut up put out of the ground/sand....they don't eat from a pile on the sand they eat food from parts of the plant above ground...they will rarely eat and entire plant pulling up the roots and consuming them roots and sand. Some folks will tie their offerings with string and then hang it from above at tortoise height to allow the tort to eat from above the ground and not on it....

 

[Yvonne G]

They eat plants off of stems, hardly ever finding something to eat directly off the ground, and if they DO pick something up off the ground, it's probably something dry with no sand stuck to it. Anyway, the "desert" where tortoises live is hard packed earth, and not loose sand.