Numbers kept: 2 ?
   
Spur-thighed & Hermann's tortoises had been the 'bread & butter' tortoises in Europe until the early 1980's (?) before their import was severely restricted, thus causing the importers to look for alternatives: Central Asian Tortoises.

They could be bought in Munich pet shops for as little as DEM 10,-- (~ US$ 6). This enabled the former USSR to cut back a bit on their trade deficit and went on for quite a while until imports of these animals were finally restricted, too.

Good for these tortoises, as they are even more difficult to keep and breed than their predecessors - the climate in Western Europe is just too different from the one in those regions from where they originate. In my opinion they would thrive in those regions of the western US which are home to Gopherus. (Let me know if you are keeping some in Utah, Nevada, Arizona, California, Texas, New Mexico)

I purchased two juveniles back then which I gave away when they reached a size too big for their 1 x 1 m measuring enclosure (at about 10-12 cm carapace length).


To be continued...

 
Updated 2001-02-10