Hobbies And Interests
Appearance
Male padloper tortoises are smaller than their female counterparts, though they feature large, protruding bellies. Both sexes have five toes on each foot and carry flattened, brownish-red shells with black speckling; the shell edges are slightly curled and serrated.
Habitat
Padloper tortoises live in a tiny desert region of South Africa called Little Namaqualand. They prefer to hide and feed in rocky areas where they are harder to spot, often pushing themselves under craggy surfaces to escape the eyes of predators and the searing African sun.
Feeding
These tortoises are most active in the mornings when they venture out to find and feed on succulent plants, though they have been known to eat snails and a variety of parasites. Padlopers are offered a variety of greens in captive settings, though they rarely survive long as specimens or pets.
Threat to the Species
As South Africa becomes more and more industrialized, padloper populations are slowly starting to fall. In addition to being eaten by desert and domestic animals, these tortoises are often crushed on roadsides by passing cars with drivers that most likely cannot see the tiny animals crossing their paths.