Red-footed Tortoise - Population Features

Population Features

Little information is available about population density or gender ratios. Many specimens are recorded from near research stations and cities, but that is almost certainly more due to the ease of finding them there than higher localized populations. They are considered one of the most common turtle species in many localities. When a dam was being built in the Edo region of Venezuela, several hundreds of the red- and yellow-footed tortoises were captured for relocation. Large numbers are also found in markets, confiscated at airports, etc. On the other hand, there are very few records from Peru, Ecuador, Argentina and central Brazil. In the Guiana Shield region, there are islands of higher populations and stretches where few have been located.

Debra K. Moskovits' noted the difficulties of counting tortoises that are often well-hidden, dug in, deep in burrows, etc. during her studies on the island of Maracas in Venezuela. She found that trained dogs discovered many that she would have not found on her own. Her studies showed a nearly balanced mix of 1.32 males per female, and 1.05 red-footed tortoise per hectare (2.4 acres) on the island, which she felt may be an underestimate due to the difficulty in finding the tortoises.