Classification:Introduced Species - While the Hermann's Tortoise has been seen and identified in Arizona, Texas, & Florida at this time there are no records of any breeding populations in the wild. Sightings of this species are most likely of released or escaped pets that were imported for the pet trade.
Description: Hermann's tortoises are small to medium-sized tortoises from southern Europe. Young animals and some adults have attractive black and yellow-patterned carapaces, although the brightness may fade with age to a less distinct gray, straw, or yellow coloration. They have slightly hooked upper jaws and, like other tortoises, possess no teeth, just strong, horny beaks. Their scaly limbs are greyish to brown, with some yellow markings, and their tails bear a spur (a horny spike) at the tip. Adult males have particularly long and thick tails, and well-developed spurs, distinguishing them from females.
The eastern subspecies T. h. boettgeri is much larger than the western T. h. hermanni, reaching sizes up to 11 inches in length. A specimen of this size may weigh 6.6 to 8.8 lbs. T. h. hermanni rarely grows larger than 7.1 inches. Some adult specimens are as small as 2.8 inches.
Habitat: Hermann's tortoises prefer inland and coastal forest habitats. Females build their nests in the forests, which keeps the eggs isolated from predators. Due to habitat destruction within their range, they are also found in habitats such as dry, hilly grasslands or farmland. Despite being suboptimal, these habitats still allow for the tortoises to actively forage in ground vegetation.
Range: Introduced into Arizona, Florida, & Texas. Testudo hermanni can be found throughout southern Europe. The western population (T. h. hermanni) is found in eastern Spain, southern France, the Balearic islands, Corsica, Sardinia, Sicily, southern and central Italy (Tuscany). The eastern population (T. h. boettgeri) is found in Serbia, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Romania, Bulgaria, Albania, Turkey and Greece, while T. h. hercegovinensis populates the coasts of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, and Montenegro.
Diet: Hermann's tortoises eat ground vegetation such as grasses, leaves and flowers. When vegetation is scarce, they may also eat small insects, snails, or slugs.
Reproduction: Immediately after surfacing from their winter resting place, Hermann's tortoises commence courtship and mating. Courtship is a rough affair for the female, which is pursued, rammed, and bitten by the male, before being mounted. Aggression is also seen between rival males during the breeding season, which can result in ramming contests.
Between May and July, female Hermann's tortoises deposit between two and 12 eggs into flask-shaped nests dug into the soil, up to 3.9 inches deep. Most females lay more than one clutch each season. The pinkish-white eggs are incubated for around 90 days and, like many reptiles, the temperature at which the eggs are incubated determines the hatchlings sex. At 78.8℉, only males will be produced, while at 86℉, all the hatchlings will be female. Young Hermann's tortoises emerge just after the start of the heavy autumn rains in early September and spend the first four or five years of their lives within just a few metres of their nests. If the rains do not come, or if nesting took place late in the year, the eggs will still hatch, but the young will remain underground and not emerge until the following spring. Until the age of six or eight, when the hard shell becomes fully developed, the young tortoises are very vulnerable to predators and may fall prey to rats, badgers, magpies, foxes, wild boar, and many other animals. If they survive these threats, the longevity of Hermann's tortoises is around 30 years. One rare record of longevity is 31.7 years. Compared to other tortoises (e.g. Testudo graeca), the longevity might be underestimated and many sources are reporting they might live 90 years or more.
Status: The species is included in Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) meaning international export/import requires CITES documentation to be obtained and presented to border authorities. Hermann's tortoises are listed as "Near threatened" on the IUCN red list. Populations have declined due to construction, poaching, wildfires, and herbicides. Construction results in drastic habitat loss and fragmentation. Road construction, especially, separates tortoise populations and leads to vehicular mortality. Wildfires have been reported to have eradicated up to 50% of the population. The effects of these disturbances have a large impact on Hermann's tortoise populations, due to their long lifespans and late age at sexual maturity. Reintroduction programs have been implemented in an attempt to stabilize existing populations.
Subspecies: There are two, but it is unknown which one, or if both, is/are present in the United States.
Disclaimer: ITIS taxonomy is based on the latest scientific consensus available, and is provided as a general reference source for interested parties. However, it is not a legal authority for statutory or regulatory purposes. While every effort has been made to provide the most reliable and up-to-date information available, ultimate legal requirements with respect to species are contained in provisions of treaties to which the United States is a party, wildlife statutes, regulations, and any applicable notices that have been published in the Federal Register. For further information on U.S. legal requirements with respect to protected taxa, please contact the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
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