All things Greek Tortoise

Syrian Golden Greek Tortoises

Outline

As of the creation of this document, there are ten scientifically recognized subspecies of Greek tortoises. Testudo graeca terrestris, also commonly known as the Mesopotamian tortoises, are just one of those ten. These wonderful little tortoises were first brought into the US back in 2000 and 2001. The original three groups which came in were from Syria. After, groups began to be imported from Jordan and Lebanon.

Original taxa classified them and reclassified them as testudo foweri, or testudo graeca floweri, but ultimately all of these animals fell under the umbrella of testudo graeca terrestris.

Coloration & Characteristics

To keep it concise, and for the purpose of this document, we will refer to the groups which are from the local of Syria. This is the group we produce. Our original group, with our original males and females, produces hatchings for us for approximately 25 years now. They are not stopping anytime soon. These Mesopotamian tortoises are classified by having smaller heads with a more blunt face.They are overall smaller in size. Males will reach around 5-inches while females will reach 7-inches.The shell shape is also rounder, with a higher dome than some other subspecies of the Greek Tortoise.

This is a great photo comparison of

two Ibera Greeks left and center, and

one Mesopotamian Greek on the right

(a Syrian Golden Greek phase).

On of our female Banana phase Golden Greek Tortoises

The original groups imported had animals which showed a huge range of coloration and variation, though every single male maintained a peach coloration throughout their head and neck.

Usually, we classify this as either banana phase or peach phase Golden Greek Tortoises. Adult males, which are sexually mature, will have either peach or banana colored skin around their neck, shoulders, rear and tails. Adult females can also show this peach or banana yellow coloration to their skin, but it is less vibrant. All babies will show a patternless peach or yellow coloration.

The interesting thing about the Syrian Golden Greeks is, these colorations are genetically proven and are inheritable traits directly from parent to child.

These are the animals classified as “Golden Greek Tortoises”.

Not all t. g. terrestris are Golden Greeks.

When the original nickname came about, the “Golden Greek” was only given to those Greek Tortoise which showed the golden colorations. You were not just purchasing a ‘Greek tortoise’ or a ‘Mesopotamian Greek tortoise’, you were purchasing an animal which was Golden in coloration. Over the years, the name had been hastily given to any animal under the taxa of terrestris. As a keeper, it is discouraging to see dark animals sold as Golden Greeks. They are bred specifically for their light colored shells and skin and it proves through generations.

Additionally, it should be recognized, the Jordanian and Lebanese will display these bright golden, yellow and peach coloration. This is part of the confusion, because those animals were also rightfully named Jordanian Golden Greeks or Lebanese Golden Greeks. All animals from these importation's did not fall under that umbrella. When looking at the importations as a whole, there were truly outstanding animals in the shipments. As keepers, we all should collectively do better and making sure the Golden Greeks sold are actually golden. It is all on our shoulders to keep transparency on what we sell and what we have. Misinformation should never be in an animal-based business. Especially if it is to sell an animal for a higher profit.

Behavior

Golden Greek Tortoises are very personable and social tortoises. Our group of Golden Greeks do not have issues introducing a new male or female to the colony. There is minimal observable aggression when we keep groups with a minimum ration of 1.4. We see what we would categorize as normal breeding and courtship behavior.

Some males can display sexual aggression within the first two years (approximately 3.5”). This isn't aggression comparable to some of the more domineering species like Sulcata tortoises or Russian tortoises. Normal sexual aggression is displayed through the males running around trying to find females, and I mean running. Some will head-bob the females and check her willingness to breed with her. I have actually seen our males leave a female to find another one willing to breed when she appears unresponsive to his advances.

As always, when keeping more than one reptile, have the ability to separate the animals as needed. Out of all of our male tortoises, the Golden Greeks are one of the nicest during breeding. They are not observed nipping at the faces of the females. We never see the males ganging up on one female. But, having a separation enclosure on standby is just good keeping practices.

We usually advise to separate animal due to the females not reaching a stable sexual maturity until 5-6 years old. For the longevity of the tortoises, a female Golden Greek Tortoise should be near full gown for a couple years prior to breeding.

We want you to succeed with these wonderful and beautiful little tortoises.

Breeding

The Syrian Golden Greeks are smaller on the Greek Tortoise spectrum, as mentioned. A healthy and good-sized female usually lays approximately 4-6 eggs. The vermiculite to water ratio is the same you find with most other testudo species. You can usually tell when an egg will be viable due to it developing a chalky white color as it sets. We keep our egg room relatively dark, and candle eggs minimally.

Light is not a normal occurrence for eggs which are buried in darkness for the duration of their incubation period. We have also found most of the time, they tortoises which hatch inside of the nest will sit in the nest for a day or two, soaking up as much nutrients from the egg as possible prior to climbing out.

In our incubator, the time frame is 62-65 days at a pretty consistent 87 F. The mean calculation for Golden Greek eggs is exactly 65 days for us. Naturally, ground hatched babies take longer. Eggs will diapause in the ground, so, although they are more likely to still develop during those 62-65 days, there is a portion of time with a delay of incubation or slowed incubation, which can be unpredictable. This time frame can move all the way up to 100-150 days in comparison. Eggs laid in the ground in April and May will tend to hatch around August and September of the same year.

Syrian Golden Greeks do not always hatch out completely peach. We notice a color change as they bask, absorb their belly button, and absorb all the nutritional supplements from their first meals within the first week.

Habitat

Golden Greek Tortoises come from Syria and have been commonly found and documented along the outskirts of Aleppo, which is a fertile and gently undulated plateau area. Average temperatures are 82F in the hottest months, and 44F in the coolest months. This means it is very even temperature, with a higher altitude and more exposure to UV rays. During the summer, it is documented they have upwards of 14 hours of sunlight in certain parts of Syria.

Certain patterns for keeping these animals we have noticed are the following:

UV is important on making these animals vibrant and strong. Although they do not like basking in the heat (100+F), they love basking on high UV index days with cooler temperatures (in the 80's). They will be the first ones out in the mornings to bask, disappear when it gets too hot, and stays out in the evenings getting that last bit of sun for the day.

This does not mean they can take the cold weather like some other testudo’s. In fact, most people have a hard time brumating these animals; they cannot take below freezing temperatures. For our brumation, Golden Greeks are the last ones to go to sleep for the winter (we do not drop below 42F in the winter and it never snows). They are also one of the first species to come up in the spring. On average, with our current micro-climate, they are down from mid-November to late February.

As with all species of Testudo, cold and wet will not work for brumation. We are not talking about the overall environment, we are talking directly where your animal is attempting to brute. If you are brumating your tortoises naturally outside, make sure they are protected from the elements : floods, rain, wind chill and frost. If you are in an area which snows and you are keeping your tortoise in the garden, please invest in a greenhouse for your tortoises in winter.

Golden Greeks need UVB. If you want a particularly marvelous looking golden Greek tortoises, you have to provide your normal calcium supplement routine and a good quality UVA+UVB lights. There is a difference between animals which have only been provided supplements versus those who have supplementation and the full UV spectrum. They are not as vibrant. They almost have a bruised appearance. The tortoises are NOT soft from MBD issues, but they are discolored and patchy with graying tones instead of those vibrant peach and yellows you could be seeing.

Ibera Greek Tortoises

Outline

Ibera Greek Tortoises are easily recognized as one of the original and most recognized Greek Tortoise. Their Latin is testudo graeca ibera. They are very hardy and personable tortoises, with a wide variety of color options and patterns available. Our original group is what started out farm back in 1986. We fell in love with the animals and their personality, and it is one of the things which made Sunland Breeders who they are today.

Ibera Greek tortoises over the years had a couple re-classifications. Animals which came in as testudo graeca graeca were commonly misnamed from testudo greaca ibera, and vice versa.

Color & Characteristics

Ibera Greek Tortoises are a beautiful group of Greek tortoises with a very wide range of colors produced. These tortoises can range from pure black colorations with black heads and fully black plastrons. They can also be near patternless, with tan and yellow faces and shells.

We have had our original F1 group of Ibera Greek Tortoises since 1988. They still produce for us to this day. We are breeding out specific coloration for the black Ibera Greeks, patternless coloration and the classing coloration with the soft browns and sharp black contrast.

Most Ibera Greek Tortoises also have a beautiful chevron pattern on the tops of their head branching from eye to eye and giving them a noticeably dark nose. This chevron pattern is not observed in the our group of testudo graeca terrestris (the Syrian Golden Greek Tortoises). You can see the distinct color pattern in our groups pictured right and down below.

The Ibera Greeks are a larger species of Greek available to the pet trade, with males reaching up to 7 inches to 8 inches in length. The females will eventually reach from 9 inches to 10 inches long. They keep the oval shell shape overall, with a slight flair to their marginal scutes. These Ibera Greek Tortoises will also have a much more gradual dome in comparison to the Golden Greek species and some other like Hermans Tortoises.

Another common name for Greek Tortoises are Spur Thigh Tortoises, notably named for the large spurs on their thighs. This is one of the main ways you can differentiate a Greek tortoise from most other tortoises.

The Spur Thigh highlighted inside the circle.

Breeding

The Ibera Greek Tortoises is a veery hardy and prolific breeder. A healthy, good-sized female usually lays approximately 6-8 eggs. The Greek tortoises have been known to lay more than once a year in a smaller group of eggs at a time, referred to as double clutching. This means we can see between 5-6 eggs twice a year. Usually, our Ibera Greek Tortoises are the last testudo species to lay eggs for us, laying between the end of April to early June. This is mainly based on temperatures and humidity in our micro-climate.

The vermiculite to water ratio is the same you find with most other testudo species. You can usually tell when an egg will be viable due to it developing a chalky white color as it sets. We keep our egg room relatively dark, and candle eggs minimally.

Light is not a normal occurrence for eggs which are buried in darkness for the duration of their incubation period. We have also found most of the time, the tortoises which hatch inside of the nest will sit in the nest for a day or two, soaking up as much nutrients from the egg and ground as possible prior to climbing out.

In our incubator, the time frame is 60-65 days at a pretty consistent 87 F. Naturally, ground hatched babies take longer. Eggs will diapause in the ground, so, although they are more likely to still develop during those 60-65 days, there is a portion of time with no development or slow growth which can be unpredictable. This time frame can move all the way up to 100-150 days in comparison. Eggs laid in the ground in April and May will tend to hatch around August and September of the same year. Numerous times, we have had Ibera Greek Tortoises babies winter over outside in the parent's enclosures.

For all animals we hatch out and keep for the second and third generation projects we have, the pattern develops true to what they hatch out as. A patternless baby will stay patternless. A black baby will continue to develop the black and dark brown colors.

This is a quick run down of the map area for the Greek Tortoises (testudo graeca) species we keep and produce.

The map Legend is on the top left corner.

Note: the green with black stripes is an area where he Ibera Greeks and the Mesopotamian Greeks overlap in territory.

This differentiation is due to natural land divides like mountain ranges in the area which make the key difference in these animals' characteristics.

It is also worth noting there are natural intergrades between Greek tortoises within their species.

This is not full and complete.

Remember there are approximately 10 recognized subspecies in the Greek tortoise family.