swimming

[RichardS]

Who says tortoises can't swim?

http://www.arkive.org/media/CB/CB98B3EC-1AD0-462F-84E0-1B39A66A1863/Presentation.Large/photo.jpg

http://www.arkive.org/aldabra-giant-tortoise/geochelone-gigantea/video-06b.html

 

[reptylefreek]

Thats freakin awsome... i know leopards swim. My leopard loves to be in deep water in the bath. But i never thought I would see an aldabra swim

 

[GBtortoises]

Many years ago when I used to keep several species together, (some of which should not have been), I had a male Redfoot who would constantly end up in the deep end of a water turtle pool paddling around. He'd come and go on his own and seemed to be paddling around at an easy, slow pace, never in a panick, just lumbering along.

 

[Stephanie Logan]

Awesome. Look like the cousins of my Mazuri munching friends on the May page of the TFO calendar here by my desk...

 

[RichardS]

There was a show on Animal Planet or Discover Channel recently that had a huge yellow foot swimming in the Amazon. I don't remember if it was a BBC film or if it was Jeff Corwin, Austin Stevens, or Donald Schultz. Does anyone remember this?

I want to say it was Austin Stevens in search of an anaconda or something.

 

[samstar]

I'm impressed, never knew

 

[Yvonne G]

How do you s'pose the archipelagos off the coast of South America became populated by giant tortoises? Distant cousins many, many years ago had to have swum there.

 

[GBtortoises]

So if a tortoise is doing it, is it still considered the "doggy paddle"?

 

[brookeekoorb]

Beautiful photos Thanks for linking!

 

[Stephanie Logan]

So if a tortoise is doing it, is it still considered the "doggy paddle"?

Snark, snark!

 

[samstar]

So if a tortoise is doing it, is it still considered the "doggy paddle"?

sounds cute

 

[DonaTello's-Mom]

That does look cool. Thanks for sharing that with us!

 

[Kristina]

My Hingebacks definitely swim. They paddle around and blow bubbles and splash and have a good ole' time.

I find it AMAZING that the closest relative of the Galapagos tortoise is the tiny by comparison Chaco from South America... As Yvonne said, they had to get onto those islands somehow!!!

I once found a Gopher tortoise that had fallen into my grandparents pool down in FL. He was floating, just paddling around, looking for a way out or a rescue. I picked him up, sat him on the edge of the pool, and he lumbered off into the hedgerow.

Tortoises rock. Seriously.