Agrionemys horsfieldii

History of Central Asian tortoise Agrionemys horsfieldii (Testudinidae, Reptilia) harvesting in Uzbekistan, and its population impact

The harvesting of the Central Asian tortoise has been a longstanding practice in Uzbekistan. Throughout the 1930s–1950s, this species was harvested to feed farm livestock and shepherd dogs, and during the World War II, tortoise meat was used to provide additional nutrition to the people. The 1960s marked the start of commercial trade in tortoises. The annual volumes of legal harvesting of wild tortoises started to grow in the late 1990s, and reached 85 thousand specimens per year by 2017.

Thermal Biology and Dayly Activity of Central Asian Tortoise (Agrionemys horsfieldii) (Testudinidae, Reptilia)

Authors: Bondarenko D. A., Peregontsev E. A.

The data on the thermal biology and daily activity of the Central Asian tortoise Agrionemys horsfiedii have been generalized on the basis of our own research and literature information. A description of the daily activity cycles with the body and environmental temperatures characterized is proposed. There are 8 periods of the daily activity and thermoregulatory behavior. According to our measurement data of the tortoise’s cloacal temperature, their egress from their burrows takes place under a minimum body temperature of 9.4°С and a minimum substrate one of 11.8ºС.

DISTRIBUTION OF THE CENTRAL ASIAN TORTOISE AGRIONEMYS HORSFIELDII (GRAY, 1844) IN UZBEKISTAN (RANGE, REGIONAL AND LANRSCAPE DISTRIBUTION, POPULATIONS DENSITY)

Authors: Bondarenko D. A., Peregontsev E. A.

The Central Asian tortoise distribution in Uzbekistan is described on the basis of our analysis of findings at 287 localities. All these localities with their locations have been mapped. The history of the propagation and formation of the habitat of the species is provided. It has been revealed that the tortoise is widely settled in desert landscapes. The area of its habitat is 67% of the territory of the republic (about 300,000 sq. km). However, the territory with higher population densities (> 10 animals per ha) occupies about 0.6% of this territory.