Pancake tortoise

Species of tortoise

The pancake tortoise (Malacochersus tornieri) is a species of flat shelled tortoise in the family Testudinidae. The species is native to Tanzania and Kenya. There are also small populations in northern Zambia. Its common name refers to the flat shape of its shell.

Both the specific name, tornieri, and an alternate common name, Tornier's tortoise, are in honor of German zoologist Gustav Tornier.

Malacochersus tornieri is the only member of its genus. While the shell bones of most other tortoises are solid, the pancake tortoise has shell bones with many openings, making it lighter and more agile than other tortoises. On the rear of its shell, it has a highly ossified lump that is different from the rest of its bone structure. The carapace (top shell) is brown, frequently with a variable pattern of radiating dark lines on each scute (shell plate), helping to camouflage the tortoise in its natural dry habitat.

An East African species, M. tornieri is native to southern Kenya and northern and eastern Tanzania, It is found on hillsides with rocky outcrops (known as kopjes) in arid thorn scrub and savanna, from 100 to 6,000 feet (30 to 1800 metres) above sea level. The species inhabits the Somalia Masai floristic region, an arid semi desert characterized by Acacia Commiphora bushland and Brachystegia woodland in upland localities. It occurs in dry savannah of low altitude at small rocky hills of the crystalline basement.

Pancake tortoises live in isolated colonies, with many individuals sharing the same kopje, or even crevice. and young are independent as soon as they hatch. Wild and captive specimens often bask and, although they do not appear to hibernate, there are reports that they may aestivate beneath flat rocks during the hottest months.

The greatest threats facing the pancake tortoise are habitat destruction and its over exploitation by the pet trade. Given the low reproductive rate of this tortoise, populations that have been harvested may take a long time to recover. Commercial development diminishes the amount of suitable habitat for pancake tortoises, which already is neither common nor extensive. Tortoises in Kenya are threatened by clearance of thorn scrub for conversion to agriculture and in Tanzania by over grazing of goats and cattle. The pancake tortoise is classified as critically endangered on the IUCN Red List and listed on Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). In 1981, Kenya banned the export of the pancake tortoise unless given written permission by the Minister for the Environment and Natural Resources. Tanzania protects this species under the Wildlife Conservation (National Game) Order, 1974, and it is protected within the Serengeti National Park. The European Union banned the import of the pancake tortoise in 1988, but trade with EU members continues, with several countries having reported importing the species. The pancake tortoise has been bred in captivity and is now the subject of a coordinated breeding programme in European zoos.