?? for anyone

[jeff kushner]

Back-story;

Years ago(20 or so) like many Dads, I took my family to Disney. We rented a townhouse in Kissimmee for the trip. The day we got there, I went for a walk and brought back "home" a large Tortoise. I don't know what kind is was but it was black, with a high back and was around 20" long and I remember this part well, he was heavy..........because I had to carry him several hundred yards to get back home....he weighed around 25-30lbs. I was in pretty good shape back then from playing ball well into my 30's but man he got HEAVY after nearly a 1/4 mile.

Anyway, we kept him for the day, letting him roam the lower floor.....till he laid down a brown turd, the length of the hallway to wit "wife#1" said "OUT"....and I abided.....I knew that look, and knew to never argue with a woman who has that look in her eyes. So, I bundled him up in a large towel, hopped in the Minivan and took him back home and let him go.

I never know what kind he was and at the time, it really didn't matter. I know he was way too large to be a Gopher and his color was pretty uniform...and very dark. His feet were tough, like backhoe shovels and my guess was that he was 20-30 years old but that was just a guess based on his appearance.

Any ideas of what kind he was?



jeff

 

[wellington]

A tortoise or turtle or Box turtle?
I believe there is only one native tortoise to FL
I'm not in FL. Will be interesting to see the guesses. To bad you didn't get a picture.

 

[wellington]

@ZEROPILOT

 

[TurtzInMyYard]

Back-story;

Years ago(20 or so) like many Dads, I took my family to Disney. We rented a townhouse in Kissimmee for the trip. The day we got there, I went for a walk and brought back "home" a large Tortoise. I don't know what kind is was but it was black, with a high back and was around 20" long and I remember this part well, he was heavy..........because I had to carry him several hundred yards to get back home....he weighed around 25-30lbs. I was in pretty good shape back then from playing ball well into my 30's but man he got HEAVY after nearly a 1/4 mile.

Anyway, we kept him for the day, letting him roam the lower floor.....till he laid down a brown turd, the length of the hallway to wit "wife#1" said "OUT"....and I abided.....I knew that look, and knew to never argue with a woman who has that look in her eyes. So, I bundled him up in a large towel, hopped in the Minivan and took him back home and let him go.

I never know what kind he was and at the time, it really didn't matter. I know he was way too large to be a Gopher and his color was pretty uniform...and very dark. His feet were tough, like backhoe shovels and my guess was that he was 20-30 years old but that was just a guess based on his appearance.

Any ideas of what kind he was?



jeff

Sorry, Jeff. I can't offer an answer...but oh, if only this question could have been posted in the CDR -- I could offer a humorous response. On the other hand, it could get me put in turtle jail, and since I'm new here, I don't know anyone well enough to ask for bail

Welcome to The Burrow. Cheers!

 

[TisMary]

Great story @jeff kushner! ? Do you think it was a native or an invasive species? I browsed Invasive.org for invasive (d'uh!) reptiles in Florida and they list African spurred tortoise (Geochelone sulcata). The Florida Invasive Partnership lists this plus the Leopard tortoise (G. pardalis). You might look at pictures of these 2 species - maybe you'll recognize your defecating friend. ?

Far as I know, the Gopher Tortoise (Gopherus polyphemus) is the only tortoise native to FL (fun fact: it's the
Florida State Tortoise! I didn't know that was a thing!)

​

 

[Yvonne G]

My first thought was a young, escaped Aldabra.

 

[dd33]

Had to be a gopher tortoise. A quick internet search lists the record at 33 pounds and 17" I feel like I have seen them larger than that. I had a friend call once and said there was a sea turtle in the front yard of his new house. It turned out to be a really, really big gopher tortoise.

 

[wellington]

My first thought was a young, escaped Aldabra.

Oh I'm sure the owners of that one would really be panicked unless they weren't as expensive as they are now, but I'm sure they were even more rare.

 

[ZEROPILOT]

@ZEROPILOT

It doesn't sound like a Gopher.
Neither the color or the size do.
However, chances are it was.

 

[Maro2Bear]

I’m guessing Gopher Tortoise as well. Since that was a long time ago, I’m sure some of the finer details get lost. Probably not as heavy or long. Carrying even a 15 lb tort for a long distance is trying.


I guess we’ll never know. But a good story!

 

[Blackdog1714]

Gotta add at least a pound or 2 for the ? it was holding in!

 

[TurtzInMyYard]

Gotta add at least a pound or 2 for the ? it was holding in!

 

[zovick]

Back-story;

Years ago(20 or so) like many Dads, I took my family to Disney. We rented a townhouse in Kissimmee for the trip. The day we got there, I went for a walk and brought back "home" a large Tortoise. I don't know what kind is was but it was black, with a high back and was around 20" long and I remember this part well, he was heavy..........because I had to carry him several hundred yards to get back home....he weighed around 25-30lbs. I was in pretty good shape back then from playing ball well into my 30's but man he got HEAVY after nearly a 1/4 mile.

Anyway, we kept him for the day, letting him roam the lower floor.....till he laid down a brown turd, the length of the hallway to wit "wife#1" said "OUT"....and I abided.....I knew that look, and knew to never argue with a woman who has that look in her eyes. So, I bundled him up in a large towel, hopped in the Minivan and took him back home and let him go.

I never know what kind he was and at the time, it really didn't matter. I know he was way too large to be a Gopher and his color was pretty uniform...and very dark. His feet were tough, like backhoe shovels and my guess was that he was 20-30 years old but that was just a guess based on his appearance.

Any ideas of what kind he was?



jeff

At that size and coloration, it was most likely NOT a Florida Gopher Tortoise. I would think it may more likely have been an escaped non-native captive tortoise. My three top choices for the tortoise you described would be: Aldabra Tortoise, Galapagos Tortoise, and Burmese Black Mountain Tortoise, all of which are bred in FL by several different people, so finding an escapee is quite possible.

 

[Yvonne G]

At that size and coloration, it was most likely NOT a Florida Gopher Tortoise. I would think it may more likely have been an escaped non-native captive tortoise. My three top choices for the tortoise you described would be: Aldabra Tortoise, Galapagos Tortoise, and Burmese Black Mountain Tortoise, all of which are bred in FL by several different people, so finding an escapee is quite possible.

YES!!! For their size, the Manouria tortoises are VERY good climbers. I'm changing my guess from aldabra to Manouria!

 

[jeff kushner]

I just had to google "Manouria "

Generally yes but they have fairly flat backs.....but yes, a very definite possibility.


FYI- got a call out to wife#1 for pics from that vacation. I think that one may exist........I've got a bunch of CD's filled with family pics that I"ll have to review.

It would be kind of neat to solve the riddle after all these years....

This link.......caught my eye....

The Asian forest tortoise (Manouria emys) is a species of tortoise in the family Testudinidae. The species is endemic to Southeast Asia Stock Photo - Alamy

Download this stock image: The Asian forest tortoise (Manouria emys) is a species of tortoise in the family Testudinidae. The species is endemic to Southeast Asia. - 2CW642P from Alamy's library of millions of high resolution stock photos, illustrations and vectors.

www.alamy.com

 

[Yvonne G]

One of our Manourias has a very high dome. This is Medea: