Lorraine Williamson
Spain is home to just two native species of land tortoise, and both are fighting for survival. The Mediterranean tortoise (Testudo hermanni) and the spur-thighed tortoise (Testudo graeca) are icons of Iberian biodiversity, yet their existence is now so precarious that scientists warn extinction is a real possibility.
Despite decades of legal protection, their habitats continue to shrink, predators multiply, and the illegal pet trade undermines wild populations.
Shrinking habitats from coast to mountain
Once widespread around the Mediterranean, the Mediterranean tortoise now clings to isolated pockets in Spain. Its natural refuge lies in the Sierra de l’Albera, near the French border, though reintroduction projects have given it a second chance in places like the Garraf Massif, Montsant mountains, the Gaià River basin and the Ebro Delta. Small populations also survive on the Balearic Islands.
The spur-thighed tortoise’s range is even more limited. It inhabits dry landscapes in Murcia, northern Almería and the Doñana National Park in Andalucia, with reports of small groups persisting on Mallorca. This patchy distribution leaves both species vulnerable to habitat fragmentation, which isolates groups and erodes their genetic diversity.
Human pressures and natural predators
Conservationists say the threats are layered and relentless. Expanding farmland, roads and urban development have carved up their habitats. Climate change adds further strain, with prolonged droughts drying out eggs and reducing hatchling survival.
On top of this, the illegal pet trade remains rampant. Rescue centres in Catalonia alone receive more than 3,000 confiscated Mediterranean tortoises every year, often taken from private homes where they were kept as pets.
Exotic animals rescued from a home
Predation is another obstacle. Wild boar in particular wreak havoc on nests, digging up eggs and devouring hatchlings. Foxes, martens and even crows compound the pressure on fragile populations already pushed to the brink.
How to tell the species apart
Though easy to confuse, the two species have distinct features. The Mediterranean tortoise bears a bright yellow shell patterned with dark spots, with a distinctive split plate above its tail. Adults grow between 13 and 20 centimetres and can live for over 50 years, though they only reach maturity after nearly a decade.
The spur-thighed tortoise, darker and less vividly patterned, lacks the split tail plate. Its distribution is smaller still, making it the more vulnerable of the two. Both species lay just three or four eggs per clutch, usually in sun-drenched open ground. Remarkably, the temperature of incubation decides the sex of the offspring — hotter nests produce more females, cooler ones more males.
Did You Know? Spain’s Tortoises at a Glance
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Shell fingerprints: No two Mediterranean tortoises share the same shell markings, making each as individual as a human fingerprint.
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Longevity: Spur-thighed tortoises can live for decades in the wild and often surpass 60 years in captivity, with some recorded at over a century.
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Sex by temperature: Nest warmth decides the hatchlings’ sex — hotter eggs usually produce females, cooler ones males.
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Diet surprises: While mainly herbivores, they’ll eat snails or carrion in dry seasons to boost calcium.
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Navigation skills: These tortoises can often retrace their path if moved, guided more by vibrations and smell than sound.
Reintroduction projects bring cautious optimism
Across Catalonia and Andalucia, ecologists are racing to halt the decline. Projects near the Gaià River and in other Catalan reserves are carefully reintroducing Mediterranean tortoises to restored habitats. Managed by the Centre de Recerca Ecològica i Aplicacions Forestals (CREAF), these programmes do more than release animals — they rebuild ecosystems, clear obstacles, create shelter and replant vegetation.
The aim is to establish stable, self-sustaining populations capable of withstanding the multiple pressures they face. Yet success is fragile and dependent on long-term support.
Protected in law, but still at risk
On paper, Spain’s land tortoises enjoy some of the strongest protections available. Both species are listed under the Bern Convention and CITES, banning wild capture and trade without permits. But enforcement is patchy, and cultural attitudes towards tortoises as pets remain a challenge.
The fate of the tortoises in Spain
The fate of Spain’s land tortoises hinges on whether conservation can outpace the combined impact of climate change, illegal trade and human expansion. Without urgent, large-scale commitment, these slow-moving survivors of deep history could vanish from Spain’s landscapes within a generation. Their disappearance would not only mark the loss of two species but also a warning of how fragile Mediterranean ecosystems have become.
Source: Informacion