The Gopher Tortoise - zhi mankin

http://www.defendersblog.org

This particular blog post will focus on a US Native, a keystone species, and yet, an endangered one.

This particular blog post will focus on the Gopher Tortoise or the Gopherus Polyphemus. In this

blog,  I’m going to be discussing the various ecological, geographical, behavioral and physiological

characteristics of the gopher tortoise, second, how it has become an endangered species and lastly, the 

conservation steps and resource recovery plan that we have in order to keep them in existence.

Now that we know what aspects of the Gopher Tortoise we’re going to be discussing, let us dive in!

Description

The Gopher Tortoise is a terrestrial tortoise that is about 9-11 inches in length. While its shell isn't very distinct, it has elephant-like hind feet and front flippers adapted for digging. Yes, this tortoise actually digs! - but we'll get into that later.

Gopher tortoises are herbivores. They try to get all of their water from the plants that they eat, so they rarely drink water. Some of these plants include grasses, flowers, fruits, and leaves of plants and shrubs.

https://www.nrcs.usda.gov

Their ancestors have been around for approximately 60 million years in the Northern Americas. They are one of five tortoises in the Northern Americas and the only one east of the Mississippi.

      Geography and Ecology

The Gopher Tortoise’s ecosystem resides in uphill sandy regions nearby the ocean in the Southeastern United States, as depicted below.

        

https://ecos.fws.gov/ecp0/profile/speciesProfile?spcode=C044

      The gopher tortoise has an interesting ecology in the sense they reside in habitats with longleaf pine, so harvesting a high percentage of those trees is detrimental to the conservation of gopher tortoises. But, with that being said, too much longleaf pine is also detrimental to gopher tortoises. In the Wildlife Management Journal accessed on September 25th,  Lisa Yager and colleagues state that “wood cover initially was reduced in the forests post-burn, and we found more new burrows in burned forest sites”. Within that root-system, the Gopher Tortoise creates a network of burrows underground that travel anywhere from 3 to 7 yards above the surface. Those burrows usually end up in a large cavern a few yards below the burrow entrance. This burrow is not only where the Gopher Tortoise resides, but it is also home to an astonishing amount of wildlife. According to The Cave Dweller, an article written by Tracy Tuberville, “sixty vertebrate and at least 300 invertebrate species have been found in various Tortoise burrows. Some guests use the burrow as a temporary refuge, but others—mostly insects and anthropods—have never been observed outside their benefactor’s shelter”.  This engineered micro-habitat is a condition that would not be easily replicated should the gopher tortoises not be around to produce these burrows. This means that quite a few species are most likely entirely dependent upon the sanctuary that the gopher tortoise provides, and that is how the Gopher Tortoise earns its merit as a keystone species.

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        Anyways, here's a link to a video of the Gopher Tortoise forming its habitat, if you're interested.

         https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o5FwvUD2e94

Despite our knowledge of its integral part in maintaining the local ecosystem, the gopher tortoise is an endangered species!

Danger! - Population and Endangerment

The Gopher Tortoise is an endangered specie mostly due to habitat loss and fragmentation. According to Christopher Catano and Colleagues from Biodiversity and Conservation accessed on September 25^th, “Extensive habitat loss, illegal harvesting, disease, and fire suppression have resulted in Gopher Tortoise population declines in excess of 80% in the last century”.  In 2003, there were approximately 800,000 left, but their numbers have been in steep decline since. He goes on to say that “the gopher tortoise is currenty listed as threatened in Florida where habitat loss remains a serious issue and many of the remaining populations reside”. Below is an estimate of the current geographical distribution of the population, or the meta-population.

https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Tracey_Tuberville

Two major factors play into the vitality or lack thereof of the Gopher Tortoise. The first of which is that the Gopher Tortoise population is entirely specific to the Southeastern United States. Land in the Southeastern United States is predominately under private ownership. Vicki Underwood provides some statistics from a recent poll she took in her research article about Environmental Management that I accessed on September 25^th. She reports that “few respondents (19%) reported currently having tortoises on their property, although many had them in the past (30%)”. She also says that “Tortoises were persisting primarily on larger properties with Longleaf Pine that were not managed chiefly for timber production”. Many Landowners are unaware of conditions that help to conserve Gopher Tortoise populations, and that is the second major factor that contributes to the endangerment of the Gopher Tortoise.

Recovery Plan Listing

Fret not, the recovery plan was established prior to the 1995 fiscal year, with an estimated completion date in 2025. The action description is listed as "protection and management of publicly owned habitat" according to ecos.fws.gov. The work types are listed as "Management, Habitat Maintenance and Manipulation and Law Enforcement" according to the aforementioned source. These duties are listed under the responsibility of the U.S. Forest Service, the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks, Fish and Wildlife Enhancement, once again, according to the aforementioned source. 

Recovery Plan Description

Before we get into the full-on recovery plan of the Gopher Tortoise, let's discuss some of the habitat conditions that are key to a healthy community of Gopher Tortoises!

The Gopher Tortoise has several habitat selection preferences which we should be aware of when designing habitats for them. Even small scale deforestation can pay a devastating toll on the gopher tortoise and local wildlife as a whole. Gopher Tortoises reside in habitats with longleaf pine, so harvesting a high percentage of those trees is detrimental to the conservation of gopher tortoises. With that being said, too much longleaf pine is also detrimental to gopher tortoises. In the Wildlife Management Journal accessed on September 25th,  Lisa Yager and colleagues state that “wood cover initially was reduced in the forests post-burn, and we found more new burrows in burned forest sites”. Too much tree canopy coverage was also out of the range of an ideal gopher tortoise habitat. Basically, deforestation won’t ruin a habitat for a gopher tortoise, as long as it’s small and selective enough, deforestation could help the habitat.

Now that we've discussed some of the aspects of an ideal habitat, let us discuss the recovery plan agenda.

To break it down, essentially the plan in effect today to preserve the Gopher Tortoise is to properly manage public lands in the regions home to the tortoise. This includes reintroduction of Long-leaf pine as well as controlled burning. It also includes watch over the beaches on which these species reside. As I stated earlier, the majority of the land that these tortoises reside on is privately owned. As a result, one of the major functions of the recovery plan is to educate and poll those landowners over the issue of Gopher Tortoise endangerment!


What Can We Do?

If you happen to own land around a Gopher Tortoise, you can do a few things for the little critters. First, you can plant foliage native to the region, as this is what they feed on. Second, you can avoid disturbing the tortoises or their burrows by preventing children and pets from going around then, and by not lawn mowing near the area.

It's important to remember that they are not pest species! They will not interfere with your homes, happiness or livelihood.

If you're passing by, drive the speed limit! Understand that there are very slow animals in the area.

Concluding Thoughts

http://www.susanleachsnyder.com/

Now that we’ve had an in-depth discussion about the Gopher Tortoise - and all the species it impacts - let's recap!

In summary, we discussed the geographical, physiological, ecological and behavioral aspects of the Gopher Tortoise, second, how the Gopher Tortoise has become an endangered species, and lastly, the conservation steps and recovery plan that we are taking to keep them in existence. The endangered Gopher Tortoise plays a vital role to the rest of the uphill sand ecosystem. It’s important to understand the importance of this keystone species as well as all others and how to help conserve them, so that they can conserve other species.

Give this video a watch for more cute tortoise footage!  
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eq4g6Vf2N4Y

            Adios Gopher Tortoise - lovers, it has been a great chat.

Z          Zhi - concerned earthling

            P.S. - Other References

            https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eq4g6Vf2N4Y

            Here are some of the resources that I used in this article and just to simply further my knowledge on the Gopher Tortoise.

Catano, C. P., & Stout, I. J. (2015). Functional relationships reveal keystone effects of the gopher     tortoise on vertebrate diversity in a longleaf pine savanna. Biodiversity and Conservation, 24(8), 1957-1974. doi:10.1007/s10531-015-0920-x

Eager, L. Y., Heise, C. D., Epperson, D. M., & Hinderliter, M. G. (2007). Gopher Tortoise Response to Habitat Management by Prescribed Burning. Wildlife Management, 71(2), 428-434. doi:10.2193/2006-337

Tuberville, T. D. (1999). The Cave Dweller. World and I, 14(5), 178. Retrieved September 25, 2017, from http://go.galegroup.com.ezproxy.lib.calpoly.edu/ps/i.do?&id=GALE%7CA54496596 &v=2.1&u=calpolyw_csu&it=r&p=AONE&sw=w&authCount=1

Underwood, V. J., Ober, H. K., Miller, D. L., & Munn, I. A. (2012). Contributions of Private          Landowners to the Conservation of the Gopher Tortoise (Gopherus polyphemus). Environmental Management, 49(4), 846-854. doi:10.1007/s00267-012-9821-x