Species Profile for Gopher tortoise(Gopherus polyphemus)

Gopher tortoise (Gopherus polyphemus)

Taxonomy:

View taxonomy in ITIS

Listing Status: Threatened

General Information

The gopher tortoise is a large, (shell 15 to 37 centimeters or 5.9 to 14.6 inches long) dark-brown to grayish-black terrestrial turtle with elephantine hind feet, shovel-like forefeet, and a gular projection beneath the head on the yellowish, hingeless plastron or undershell (Ernst and Barbour 1972). The sex of individual turtles can usually be determined by shell dimensions. A male turtle has a greater degree of lower shell concavity, and a longer gular projection. However, the sex of tortoises at maturity size is difficult to determine (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 199O).

The species historical range included Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina. See below for information about where the species is known or believed to occur.

Current Listing Status Summary

Show entries

Status	Date Listed	Lead Region	Where Listed
Threatened	07-07-1987	Southeast Region (Region 4)	Western DPS

Showing 1 to 1 of 1 entries

» Range Information

Current Range

Last Updated: 01-16-2025 - Western DPS

Zoom in! Some species' locations may be small and hard to see from a wide perspective. To narrow-in on locations, check the state and county lists (below) and then use the zoom tool.

Want the FWS's current range for all species? Click here to download a zip file containing all individual shapefiles and metadata for all species.

* For consultation needs do not use only this current range map, please use IPaC.

Current range maps are only shown within the jurisdictional boundaries of the United States of America. The species may also occur outside this region.

Western DPS
Listing status: Threatened

States/US Territories in which this population is known to or is believed to occur: Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi
US Counties in which this population is known to or is believed to occur: View All

USFWS Refuges in which this population is known to occur: Bogue Chitto National Wildlife Refuge, Egmont Key National Wildlife Refuge, Grand Bay National Wildlife Refuge ...Show All Refuges

State	County
Alabama	Choctaw
Alabama	Clarke
Alabama	Marengo
Alabama	Mobile
Alabama	Sumter
Alabama	Washington
Louisiana	Jefferson
Louisiana	Livingston
Louisiana	Orleans
Louisiana	St. Bernard
Louisiana	St. Charles
Louisiana	St. Helena
Louisiana	St. John the Baptist
Louisiana	St. Tammany
Louisiana	Tangipahoa
Louisiana	Washington
Mississippi	Amite
Mississippi	Clarke
Mississippi	Covington
Mississippi	Forrest
Mississippi	George
Mississippi	Greene
Mississippi	Hancock
Mississippi	Harrison
Mississippi	Jackson
Mississippi	Jasper
Mississippi	Jefferson Davis
Mississippi	Jones
Mississippi	Lamar
Mississippi	Lauderdale
Mississippi	Lawrence
Mississippi	Lincoln
Mississippi	Marion
Mississippi	Newton
Mississippi	Pearl River
Mississippi	Perry
Mississippi	Pike
Mississippi	Rankin
Mississippi	Scott
Mississippi	Simpson
Mississippi	Smith
Mississippi	Stone
Mississippi	Walthall
Mississippi	Wayne

» Candidate Information

No Candidate information available for this species.

No Candidate Assessments available for this species.

Candidate Notice of Review Documents

Show entries

Date	Citation Page	Title
05/03/2022	87 FR 26152 26178	Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Review of Species That Are Candidates for Listing as Endangered or Threatened; Annual Notification of Findings on Resubmitted Petitions; Annual Description of Progress on Listing Actions
11/16/2020	85 FR 73164 73179	Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Review of Domestic Species That Are Candidates for Listing as Endangered or Threatened; Annual Notification of Findings on Resubmitted Petitions; Annual Description of Progress on Listing Actions
10/10/2019	84 FR 54732 54757	Review of Domestic and Foreign Species That Are Candidates for Listing as Endangered or Threatened; Annual Notification of Findings on Resubmitted Petitions; Annual Description of Progress on Listing Actions
12/02/2016	81 FR 87246 87272	Review of Native Species That Are Candidates for Listing as Endangered or Threatened; Annual Notification of Findings on Resubmitted Petitions; Annual Description of Progress on Listing Actions
12/24/2015	80 FR 80583 80614	Review of Native Species That Are Candidates for Listing as Endangered or Threatened; Annual Notice of Findings on Resubmitted Petitions; Annual Description of Progress on Listing Actions
12/05/2014	79 FR 72449 72497	Review of Native Species That Are Candidates for Listing as Endangered or Threatened; Annual Notice of Findings on Resubmitted Petitions; Annual Description of Progress on Listing Actions
11/22/2013	78 FR 70103 70162	Review of Native Species That are Candidates for Listing as Endangered or Threatened; Annual Notice of Findings on Resubmitted Petitions; Annual Description of Progress on Listing Actions
11/21/2012	77 FR 69993 70060	Review of Native Species That Are Candidates for Listing as Endangered or Threatened; Annual Notice of Findings on Resubmitted Petitions; Annual Description of Progress on Listing Actions
10/26/2011	76 FR 66370 66439	Review of Native Species That Are Candidates for Listing as Endangered or Threatened; Annual Notice of Findings on Resubmitted Petitions; Annual Description of Progress on Listing Actions
11/15/1994	59 FR 58982 59028	ETWP; Animal Candidate Review for Listing as Endangered or Threatened Species.

Showing 1 to 10 of 14 entries

No Uplisting Documents currently available for this species.

» Federal Register Documents

Federal Register Documents

Show entries

Date	Citation Page	Title	Supporting Documents
10/12/2022	87 FR 61830 61868	Endangered and Threatened Species: Finding for the Gopher Tortoise Eastern and Western Distinct Population Segments
10/12/2022	87 FR 61834 61868	Endangered and Threatened Species: Finding for the Gopher Tortoise Eastern and Western Distinct Population Segments	Species Status Assessment
05/03/2022	87 FR 26152 26178	Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Review of Species That Are Candidates for Listing as Endangered or Threatened; Annual Notification of Findings on Resubmitted Petitions; Annual Description of Progress on Listing Actions	Gopherus polyphemus 2022 Candidate Assessment Species Assessment Form
11/16/2020	85 FR 73164 73179	Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Review of Domestic Species That Are Candidates for Listing as Endangered or Threatened; Annual Notification of Findings on Resubmitted Petitions; Annual Description of Progress on Listing Actions	Gopherus polyphemus 2020 Candidate Assessment Species Assessment Form
10/10/2019	84 FR 54732 54757	Review of Domestic and Foreign Species That Are Candidates for Listing as Endangered or Threatened; Annual Notification of Findings on Resubmitted Petitions; Annual Description of Progress on Listing Actions	Candidate Assessment
06/20/2019	84 FR 28850 28853	Initiation of 5-Year Status Reviews for 53 Southeastern Species; Notice of reviews; request for information
03/23/2017	82 FR 14908 14910	Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Incidental Take Permit Application and Environmental Assessment for Commercial Mixed- Use Development; Miami-Dade County, FL
12/02/2016	81 FR 87246 87272	Review of Native Species That Are Candidates for Listing as Endangered or Threatened; Annual Notification of Findings on Resubmitted Petitions; Annual Description of Progress on Listing Actions
05/10/2016	81 FR 28885	Department of Defense; Proposed Gopher Tortoise Conservation and Crediting Strategy
12/24/2015	80 FR 80583 80614	Review of Native Species That Are Candidates for Listing as Endangered or Threatened; Annual Notice of Findings on Resubmitted Petitions; Annual Description of Progress on Listing Actions	Candidate Assessment

Showing 1 to 10 of 28 entries

» Species Status Assessments (SSAs)

Species Status Assessments (SSAs)

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Document Date	Document Version	Document Title
10/01/2022	0.4	Species Status Assessment for the Gopher Tortoise
10/01/2022	0.4	Species Status Assessment for the Gopher Tortoise

Showing 1 to 2 of 2 entries

Special Rule Publications

No Special Rule Publications currently available for this species.

» Recovery

Species with Recovery Documents Data Explorer
Recovery Priority Number: 9

Current Recovery Plan(s)

Show entries

Date	Plan Stage	Recovery Plan	Implementation Status	SSAs/Biological Reports	Recovery Implementation Strategies
12/26/1990	Final	Gopher Tortoise	View Implementation Progress

Showing 1 to 1 of 1 entries

Date	Citation Page	Title	Document Type
10/12/2022	87 FR 61830 61868	Endangered and Threatened Species: Finding for the Gopher Tortoise Eastern and Western Distinct Population Segments	Five Year Review Notice, Completion
06/20/2019	84 FR 28850 28853	Initiation of 5-Year Status Reviews for 53 Southeastern Species; Notice of reviews; request for information	Five Year Review Notice, Information Solicitation
07/27/2011	76 FR 45130 45162	12-Month Finding on a Petition To List the Gopher Tortoise as Threatened in the Eastern Portion of Its Range	Five Year Review Notice, Completion
04/09/2010	75 FR 18233 18234	5-Year Status Reviews of 10 Southeastern Species; Notice of initiation of reviews; request for information	Five Year Review Notice, Information Solicitation
09/09/2009	74 FR 46401 46406	90-Day Finding on a Petition to List the Eastern Population of the Gopher Tortoise (Gopherus polyphemus) as Threatened	Five Year Review Notice, Information Solicitation

Date	Title
10/12/2022	Gopher Tortoise Western DPS 5-year Review 2022
07/27/2011	Gopher Tortoise Western DPS 5-year Review 2011

» Critical Habitat

No Critical Habitat Documents currently available for this species.

» Conservation Plans

Habitat Conservation Plans (HCP) (learn more)

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HCP Plan Summaries
Tierra del Sol
Pine Belt Regional Landfill, Amend #1
Pine Belt Regional Landfill Authority
Perry County Board of Supervisors
Langboard, Inc.
Lamar County School Board
Johns Island Golf Club (58th Avenue Expansion)
City of Palm Bay
Church of God by Faith
Board of Water and Sewer Commissioners

Showing 1 to 10 of 10 entries

Safe Harbor Agreements (SHA): (learn more)

SHA Plan Summaries
Martin Branch Woodland Tract (Lambert) SHA

Candidate Conservation Agreements (CCA): (learn more)

CCA Plan Summaries
Gopher Tortoise Candidate Conservation Agreement

» Petitions

Show entries

Petition Title	Date Received by the FWS	Where the species is believed to or known to occur	Petitioner Name	Requested Action	Petition Finding(s)	Active	Petition Documents
Tortoise, gopher (Gopherus polyphemus); list eastern population as threatened, w/CH.	01/18/2006	AL, FL, GA, SC, United States	Save Our Big Scrub, Inc. Wild South	ESA - Petitioned for Listing: Threatened APA: Petitioned to designate Critical Habitat	12m petition finding Warranted But Precluded: Resubmitted on 11/21/2012 12m petition finding Warranted But Precluded: Resubmitted on 10/26/2011 12m petition finding Warranted But Precluded on 07/27/2011 90 day petition finding Substantial on 09/09/2009	No - Not Withdrawn	Tortoise Gopher Petition 01_20_06.pdf
Gopher tortoise (Gopherus polyphemus) western populations	07/17/1984	AL, LA, MS	Dr. Lynne LohmeierHead Dr. Ren Lohoefenerand	ESA - Petitioned for Listing: Threatened	12m petition finding Warranted But Precluded on 01/09/1986 90 day petition finding Substantial on 12/18/1984	No - Not Withdrawn

Showing 1 to 2 of 2 entries

» Biological Opinions

To see all FWS Issued Biological Opinions please visit the BO Report.

» Life History

No Life History information has been entered into this system for this species.

» Other Resources

NatureServe Explorer Species Reports-- NatureServe Explorer is a source for authoritative conservation information on more than 50,000 plants, animals and ecological communtities of the U.S and Canada. NatureServe Explorer provides in-depth information on rare and endangered species, but includes common plants and animals too. NatureServe Explorer is a product of NatureServe in collaboration with the Natural Heritage Network.

ITIS Reports-- ITIS (the Integrated Taxonomic Information System) is a source for authoritative taxonomic information on plants, animals, fungi, and microbes of North America and the world.

FWS Digital Media Library -- The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's National Digital Library is a searchable collection of selected images, historical artifacts, audio clips, publications, and video." +