Travancore tortoise
The Travancore Tortoise ( Indotestudo travancorica ) is a species of turtle from the subordination of the neck Berger turtles, which belongs to the genus of Asian tortoises. Its distribution area is limited to the Western Ghats in southwest India. She is still relatively common, even if it is threatened by deforestation and the investment of tea, coffee, rubber or Kardamonplantagen in their homeland. It is listed in Appendix II of the CITES agreement. It was named after the place where the specimens that were used for the first scientific description.
Appearance
The Travancore Tortoise reaches a carapace length of up to 33 centimeters. This body length is reached only by males. Females are slightly smaller and up to a maximum of 27 inches long. Then weigh up to 2.9 kilograms.
The shell is elongated and slightly flattened. He is colored either olive or brown. Most individuals have black spots on each horn plate. It is characteristic of this type that the rear portion of the tank is widened in adult animals. Young animals, however, have a rounded at the rear end tanks. The tail tip is designed as a horn nail. The extremities are scaly yellow. The head is yellow-brown. During the breeding season, parts of the facial skin bright pink color.
Habitat and behavior
The Travancore tortoise inhabits moist evergreen and semi-evergreen forests at altitudes of 450 meters above sea level. The animals prefer to live in the leaf litter and seek shelter in burrows. They are active at dawn and seek their food preference in the early morning or late afternoon. The diet consists mainly of grass, mushrooms, bamboo shoots and fallen fruit and flowers. In the stomachs of wild animals but also remains of insects and frogs have been found.
The reproductive period of the Travancore tortoise extends from November to January. Pairing the unwilling females escape the snares of the males, by pressing their tanks into the substrate. The clutch consists of between one and three eggs. The length of time until the young hatch is, 146-149 days. They are great for hatching time from 5.5 to 6 inches and weigh an average of about 35 grams.