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Desert Turtle Information

Wednesday, August 05, 2009
Related Tags: desert | tortoises | turtles | box | eggs
 

Instructions

Size

  • Step 1:
    Desert Box Turtle (public domain)Desert box turtles can be up to 14 inches long, and desert tortoises are 9 to 15 inches long. Males are generally larger than females.

Diet

  • Step 1:
    Desert box turtles are omnivores, eating plants, insects and sometimes carrion. Desert tortoises are strictly herbivorous, subsisting on grasses, flowers, herbs and some species of cacti.

Breeding

  • Step 1:
    Desert tortoises mate in the spring and fall, and the female may produce two to three clutches of eggs per year, with each clutch containing three to five eggs. Desert box turtles nest from May to July, and will produce one clutch of two to eight eggs.

Hibernation

  • Step 1:
    Both desert box turtles and desert tortoises hibernate in burrows during the winter.

Life Span

  • Step 1:
    Desert tortoises live much longer than desert box turtles, with the former living 80 to 100 years and the latter only living up to 25 years.

Resources

Photo/Video Credit

Desert Tortoise by Mark Wilson

Desert Turtle Information Provided by eHow.com
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