What type of testudo sp. is this?

[Guts]

My dad has had this guy for 30+ years, and is convinced it’s an f. Whitei but I can’t find any information about that species. I think it’s a Greek tortoise. What do y’all think?

 

[Guts]

The red on his plastron is strawberry btw

 

[Yvonne G]

Looks like a Greek to me too. Let's ask @TeamZissou

 

[jaizei]

My dad has had this guy for 30+ years, and is convinced it’s an f. Whitei but I can’t find any information about that species. I think it’s a Greek tortoise. What do y’all think?View attachment 356388View attachment 356385View attachment 356386View attachment 356387View attachment 356388View attachment 356385View attachment 356386View attachment 356387

f. whitei have also been known as testudo gracea whitei

when there was talk of separating the North African tortoises from testudo, Furculachelys was the genus name used for them.

 

[turtlesteve]

“whitei” is not a valid name. The proper name for the eastern Morrocco to Algeria origin Greek tortoises is T.g. mauritanica.

My best guess is that it’s T.g. Ibera, but it’s a total guess and you would need DNA testing to identify the subspecies.

 

[TeamZissou]

This looks to me like a Testudo graeca terrestris based on the size, shape, and coloration. Lines on the pectoral scutes also look like terrestris rather than ibera.

Mesopotamian Tortoise | hermannihavenhome

www.hermannihaven.com

Asia Minor Tortoise | hermannihavenhome

www.hermannihaven.com

T. g. whitei is an old name for T. g. graeca from Algeria, so isn't relevant anymore. They look quite a bit different from your tortoise, and can look closer to T.g. marokkensis. The biggest giveaway for N. African Greeks are the curved sides of the first vertebral scute. Your has straight sides on the first scute, which is common in Terrestris.

Recognizing the Greek Tortoises

The SubspeciesAs already mentioned in other articles, there are more than ten recognizable Greek tortoise “types” in nature and in collections, even in the USA. Some, including myself, see the current taxonomic findings as insufficient. An up-to-date and in-depth research project concerning this...

www.gardenstatetortoise.com

Moroccan Tortoise | hermannihavenhome

www.hermannihaven.com

 

[TeamZissou]

“whitei” is not a valid name. The proper name for the eastern Morrocco to Algeria origin Greek tortoises is T.g. mauritanica.

My best guess is that it’s T.g. Ibera, but it’s a total guess and you would need DNA testing to identify the subspecies.

Where and how does one get this type of testing done?

 

[BeeZee1]

Greek female