Turtles & Tortoises · Testudines

Tortoises

Family Testudinidae

The true tortoises — terrestrial, herbivorous and extraordinarily long-lived. From the manageable Hermann's and Russian to the giant sulcata, which outgrows most homes.

8 species on Baskden · 8 with a full care guide.

Greek Tortoise Testudo graeca Intermediate ✓ Care guide A hardy, dog-tame Mediterranean grazer — one of the best beginner tortoises, and a 50-year-plus commitment.
Leopard Tortoise Stigmochelys pardalis Intermediate ✓ Care guide A big, beautifully-marked grassland grazer — hardy and gentle, but it gets LARGE and lives for decades.
Red-Footed Tortoise Chelonoidis carbonarius Intermediate ✓ Care guide A colourful, personable tropical tortoise — more humidity-loving and a touch more omnivorous than a Mediterranean.
Russian Tortoise Testudo horsfieldii Beginner–Intermediate ✓ Care guide The small, hardy, dog-tame tortoise — a wonderful first tortoise if you can give it the floor space and the decades.
Sulcata Tortoise Centrochelys sulcata Advanced ✓ Care guide The adorable hatchling that becomes a 100-pound, yard-sized, decades-long commitment — cute now, enormous later.
Hermann's Tortoise Testudo hermanni Beginner–Intermediate ✓ Care guide The friendly, manageable Mediterranean tortoise — a great first tortoise like the Russian, with the same decades-long commitment.
Indian Star Tortoise Geochelone elegans Advanced ✓ Care guide The stunning star-patterned tortoise — beautiful but demanding, and wrapped in strict international trade law.
Marginated Tortoise Testudo marginata Intermediate ✓ Care guide Europe's largest Mediterranean tortoise — hardy and cold-tolerant, with a dramatic flared 'skirt' shell.

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