Testudo graeca

Description of cases of axial bifurcation of the Mediterranean Spur-thighed tortoise – Testudo graeca Linnaeus, 1758 (Testudinidae, Reptilia) based on field research and herpetological collection of ZIN RAS

Authors: Gordeev D. A., Mazanaeva L. F., Gichikhanova U. A.

Axial duplications are the most complex variant of anomalies characteristic of animals, including turtles. For turtles, the following variants of duplications are described: anakatamesodimus, derodimus, dicephaly, Siamese twins. We present a description of two specimens of the Mediterranean tortoise (Testudo graeca Linnaeus, 1758): with dicephaly and ischio-omphalopagia, a variant of Siamese twins, in which lateral fusion occurs in the region of the sacrum.

On the Reduction of the Area and Abundance of the Greek Tortoise Testudo graeca Linnaeus, 1758 (Testudinidae, Reptilia) on the Primorsky Lowland of Dagestan and Problems of its Conservation

Authors: Mazanaeva L. F., Gichihanova U. A.

Data on the status of the populations of Testudo graeca Linnaeus, 1758 on the Primorsky lowland of Dagestan are given. The research was conducted in 2014 - 2018. Over the past few decades, the range of this species on the Primorsky lowland has reduced by nine or more times. Viable populations were preserved on the coastal dunes and semidesert-steppe landscapes in the vicinity of the Aji Lake (1,300 hectares) and along the fringes and outskirts of the forest in the Samur River delta (2,100 hectares).