Gopherus berlandierii [sic] Reeves, 1975 (ex errore)
Scaptochelys berlandieri — Bramble, 1982
Gopherus berlanderi [sic] Rogner, 1996 (ex errore)
The Texas tortoise (Gopherus berlandieri) is a species of tortoise in the familyTestudinidae. The species G. berlandieri is one of six speciesoftortoises that are native to North America.
The specific epithet, berlandieri, is in honor of naturalist Jean Louis Berlandier, who worked for the Mexican government on one of the first biological surveys of Texas.[1][4] As such, some sources refer to it as Berlandier's tortoise.[4][5]
The Texas tortoise, unlike other species of gopher tortoise, is not an adept burrower. Its preferred habitat is dry scrub and grasslands. Succulent plants, a preferred food of the Texas tortoise, are common in these areas. It especially likes the fruit of cacti such as the prickly pear.
Though considered an animal of low concern by the IUCN Red List, the Texas tortoise is listed as a threatened species in the state of Texas, and thus protected by state law. It is illegal to collect or possess them. The Mexican federal government lists Gopherus berlandieri as A (= Threatened) in Mexico.[6] Likewise, using Environmental Vulnerability Scores, Gopherus berlandieri scored 18, a high vulnerability species on a scale of 0–20, in evaluations of both Tamaulipas and Nuevo Leon herpetofauna.[7][8] In 2018, the IUCN Tortoise and Freshwater Turtle Specialist Group recommended a re-assessment and re-classification of all six Gopherus species.[9] This reclassification would move G. berlandieri from Near Endangered (NE) to Near Threatened (NT).[9]
^"Appendices". CITES. Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. 4 May 2023. Retrieved 9 May 2023.. Note: Protected as a member of the Testudinidae.
^ abBeolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN978-1-4214-0135-5. ("Berlandier's Tortoise Gopherus berlandieri ", p. 24).
^Bour, Roger (2016). "Where and when was Jean Louis Berlandier born? Notes on Jean Louis Berlandier. I.". Bibliotheca Herpetologica12 (1 &2): 18–40.
^Official Mexican STANDARD NOM-059-SEMARNAT-2010, Environmental Protection-Native species of Mexico of wild flora and fauna-Risk categories and specifications for inclusion, exclusion or change-List of species at risk. STANDARD NOM-059-SEMARNAT-2010 PDF
^Terán-Juárez, S. A., E. García-Padilla, V. Mata-Silva, J. D. Johnson, and L. D. Wilson (2016). "The herpetofauna of Tamaulipas, Mexico: composition, distribution, and conservation". Mesoamerican Herpetology3: 43–113.
^Nevárez-de los Reyes, M., D. Lazcano, E. García-Padilla, V. Mata-Silva, J. D. Johnson, and L. D. Wilson (2016). "The herpetofauna of Nuevo León, Mexico: composition, distribution, and conservation". Mesoamerican Herpetology3: 558–638.
