It was Saturday late afternoon when I stepped out on the back porch to water the plants. My eyes saw it but couldn't believe at first. It was a first time I had seen one in the wild in my life, and here it was in our yard! I called Mrs. S to come over quickly. "What is it?" she replied skeptically. She'd heard this before with each new yard bird sighting. "Just look!" was my answer, "You have to see it!" Telling her would have ruined the surprise. When she saw it she was excited as well. "Is that a Desert Tortoise? "I think so," I replied. The truth was I couldn't rule out box turtle yet, especially since it was young.
She inspected it closer as ran as fast as it's little legs could carry it. "It's hurt," she noticed. I reached down and picked it up before it got too far. The corners of its shell had been chewed, and a back leg and tail showed a fresh wound. Our excitement turned to concern for this scared little being.
At first the future didn't look bright. The wildlife rehabilitor for tortoises in our area was on vacation. A couple calls later we talked to a very helpful person at Tucson Wildlife Center. She said we could bring the tortoise over to their main center just 5 miles east of us. We got there and they confirmed it was a Desert Tortoise, probably one that just hatched last August. It was probably dropped in our yard from the predator who chewed the shell, which explains his running. Our timing on opening the door may have saved him from a dire fate.
One of the people we met fostered desert tortoises. When asked about our little guys chances, he indicated it was probable he would be looked at by a world renowned desert tortoise veterinarian. Of course, he could not be re-released to the wild because disease in this species is easily picked up and transferred to other tortoises. It is always strictly recommended not to release any tortoises back into the wild after being in captivity. We were comforted that he would be in expert and caring hands, and his chances for recovery were positive.
Thank you for appreciating our native neighborhood terrestrials!
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