Gopher tortoises are primarily herbivores and feed on many species of low-growing plants. The largest part of their diet consists of grasses and legumes. They also eat gopher apple, pawpaw, blackberries, saw palmetto berries, and other fruits. Gopher tortoises will also scavenge and are opportunistic feeders, occasionally feeding on dead animals or excrement.
Gopher tortoises rarely drink (or are rarely seen drinking) from standing water. They can use their front flipper like legs to dam-up water as it runs down their burrow during a rain. Most of the water they get comes from the food they eat. During periods of extreme drought they have been seen drinking standing water on the side of the road.
In Florida gopher tortoises are on the Endangered Species List, categorized as a Threatened Species. This means that their current numbers are dropping but we are not sure exactly how much, several studies presently being conducted on the tortoises are tiring to more accurately answer this question. Their primary reason for being endangered is a loss of habitat. In the past many tortoises were killed either for food, or by people who were trying to kill the rattlesnakes that often share their burrows.
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| They may not be very pretty but they are interesting to watch |
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| The park is doing all it can to protect these fascinating creatures |
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| Those legs are powerful.. we see them kicking dirt out of their burrows |
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