Desert Tortoise
Gopherus agassizii
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- G. agassizii – Imperial Co, CA – photo by Steve Bledsoe
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- G. agassizii – Imperial Co, CA – photo by Steve Bledsoe
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- G. agassizii – San Bernardino Co, CA – photo by Brad Sillasen
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- G. agassizii – San Bernardino Co, CA – photo by Brad Sillasen
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- Map by Steve Bledsoe, SWCHR
DISTRIBUTION: In our region, Gopherus agassizii occurs in the Colorado Desert Region of California, and in the Mojave Desert Regions of California, southern Nevada, southwestern Utah and northwestern Arizona.
LEGAL STATUS: Gopherus agassizii is listed by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (FWS) as Threatened under the Endangered Species Act (ESA).
MEANING OF SCIENTIFIC NAME: Gopherus agassizii (Cooper – 1863)
Genus: Gopherus, derived by C. S. Rafinesque in 1816 from the word ‘gopher’, a generic North American term to describe burrowing rodents, or small burrowing animals.
Species: agassizii, honors Jean Louis R. Agassiz
Ref. Connor & Cohen
Ref. Ellen Beltz 2006