Sandalwood Herpetology Club

Burmese Mountain Tortoise Manouria emys

The Burmese mountain tortoises are the 4th largest species in the world and the largest in Asia. The current status in the wild, according to the IUCN Redlist, is ENDANGERED. They were listed as VULNERABLE in 1996 and elevated to ENDANGERED in 2000. The mountain tortoise is native to Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Thailand, Viet Nam, and possibly Cambodia and China.

The mountain tortoise is one of 2 species within the genus Manouria. Manouria emys, the mountain tortoise, has the nominate race, Manouria emys emys, which is generally referred to as the brown mountain tortoise, and Manouria emys phayeri, generally called the black mountain tortoise. The Impressed Tortoise, Manouria impressa, is the other species. It is much less common and has very strict dietary habits and is hard to keep in captivity.

In the fall of 2010, we visited the residence of Vic Morgan, on of the first private breeders of Manouria in the US. He is a member of the Turtle Survival Alliance (TSA) and has been working with them for a number of years. He has a few acres near St. Augustine where his tortoises are kept in very large natural enclosures. Click HERE to see photos from this trip.

COMING SOON! We are now members of the TSA and should be recieving 4 or 5 hatchlings from them soon. These will be F1's that will be used to breed back to a designated bloodline in the future.

hatchling Burmese Mountain Tortoise, Manouria emys emys

Ours are captive born animals are from Vic Morgan, a local breeder who has been working with this species since 1988 and was one of the first, if not the first, person in the private sector to breed this species. One of ours is the product of a breeding from one of his males with an adult female that was part of the Hong Kong confiscation a few years ago. That tortoise is one that would never be alive and is a contributing member of the species that, as Vic says, is, "Defying Destiny..............."

	July 26, 2011 The enclosure has been renovated all the way around. The flower boxes have been modified to allow the screen to be raised up enough to give the plants more room to grow. Reeds have also been added to the front of the enclosure to dress it up a bit. View: from middle of courtyard.
	July 26, 2011 Grass was planted and a pond installed.
	July 26, 2011 A brick wall has been added to protect a few tropical plants from being eaten by the tortoises.
	June 10, 2011 The gopher tortoises have been removed and the holes filled in. The coonties have been split and spread out. A shallow pond has been installed in the back, which is mostly in the shade. Grass has been planted as well. View: from gate by library door.
	June 10, 2011 The gopher tortoises have been removed and the holes filled in. The coonties have been split and spread out. A shallow pond has been installed in the back, which is mostly in the shade. Grass has been planted as well. View: from corner of enclosure with glass windows from library visible.
	June 10, 2011 The gopher tortoises have been removed and the holes filled in. The coonties have been split and spread out. A shallow pond has been installed in the back, which is mostly in the shade. Grass has been planted as well. View: midway along front side. Hose is visible across pond.

Here are a few selected outside links that you may find interesting.
Turtle Survival Alliance	Chelonian Research Institute
The Tortoise Reserve	Turtle Conservation Fund
World Chelonian Trust
Turtle and Tortoise Newsletter

All photos and graphics on this website by Mike Monlezun unless otherwise stated.

For more information, email Mike Monlezun

Visitors since 2004