Ploughshare tortoise (Astrochelys yniphora)

Short answers

Ploughshare tortoise: How big does the enclosure need to be?

A large outdoor facility at a zoo or breeding station – not for private keeping.

Ploughshare tortoise: What temperature does it need?

Daytime 28–32 °C, basking spot 35–40 °C, at night 17–24 °C (dry season cooler ~17 °C, rainy season ~24 °C).

Ploughshare tortoise: Does it need UVB lighting?

UVB: Essential.

Ploughshare tortoise: How long do they live?

Life expectancy: several decades (50+).

Ploughshare tortoise: Is it suitable for beginners?

No – better suited to experienced keepers (difficulty: Expert).

Climate

Daytime temperature

28–32 °C

Night temperature

17–24 °C (dry season cooler ~17 °C, rainy season ~24 °C)

Basking spot

35–40 °C

Humidity

Changing with the season: dry in the dry season, humid and high in the rainy season

UVB

Essential

Enclosure

Minimum size

a large outdoor facility at a zoo or breeding station – not for private keeping

Substrate

Soil and sand with bamboo and shrub structure (dry forest)

Feeding

Food

Herbivore: grasses, herbs, foliage and fruit; in the wild it prefers the foliage of the shrub Bauhinia pervillei, and occasionally eats the droppings of lemurs and bushpigs. No animal protein, little fruit.

Feeding interval

Plant food daily

Key facts

Adult size

carapace length 31–49 cm (males averaging 41.5 cm, females averaging 37 cm), 5.5–19 kg

Life expectancy

several decades (50+)

Origin

North-western Madagascar (Baly Bay, dry forest), endemic

Protection status

CITES Appendix I / EU Annex A; critically endangered (fewer than 400 in the wild) – all trade is illegal, only conservation breeding

Brumation

None; a seasonal cycle (rainy and dry seasons)

Cohabitation

Only in a coordinated breeding programme. Males fight each other with the plough-shaped projection on the plastron and try to flip the opponent onto its back; an overturned animal overheats quickly in the sun and can die from it. So never two males together — instead one male with several females, with visual screening and a way to separate them. During prolonged courtship a female visibly loses weight and must be separated.

Notes

NOT a pet species – CITES I, one of the rarest turtles in the world. Kept exclusively in coordinated conservation breeding programmes (EAZA for example); private trade is illegal (poaching and smuggling).

Do you keep this species?

Add your animal to Reptoria – Reptoria reminds you about feeding and shedding. Add your animal for free →

Look for Ploughshare tortoise (Astrochelys yniphora) in the marketplace →

Related species

• Radiated tortoise (Astrochelys radiata) – Expert
• Speckled padloper (Homopus areolatus) – Expert
• Serrated tent tortoise (Psammobates oculifer) – Expert
• Bell's hinge-back tortoise (Kinixys belliana) – Intermediate
• Speckled padloper tortoise (Chersobius signatus) – Expert
• Angulate tortoise (Chersina angulata) – Intermediate
• Home's hinge-back tortoise (Kinixys homeana) – Expert
• Natal hinge-back tortoise (Kinixys natalensis) – Intermediate

All species in the care wiki →

What you need to start

To keep Ploughshare tortoise (Astrochelys yniphora) you typically need: a suitable enclosure (a large outdoor facility at a zoo or breeding station – not for private keeping), substrate (Soil and sand with bamboo and shrub structure (dry forest)), a heat source with a thermostat, UVB lighting, thermometer and hygrometer, a water dish and hides. You will find equipment in the Reptoria marketplace.