This story appears in the June 2019 issue of National Geographic magazine. The first time a tortoise walked through my hut at Middle Camp on Aldabra Atoll, I was amazed. I grabbed my camera and ...

The tortoise, named "Shelby," reportedly tried to go on the lam "at a very slow rate of speed" before officers caught up.

‘See,’ said the Hare. ‘You’re all too scared to even try.’ ‘I’ll have a go,’ said the Tortoise. The Hare laughed. ‘You? The slowest creature in the whole world? I’m not wasting ...

Desert tortoises have lived in the deserts of California, Arizona, Nevada and Utah since the Pleistocene. In the early years of the 20th century, they still thrived within the Southwest's arid ...

Despite what it might sound like, tortoise isn’t a sophisticated synonym for turtle. But they are related in the animal kingdom. Turtle is the common term for any member of the order Testudines (also ...

As this keystone species' name suggests, the gopher tortoise is an expert at living underground — like a gopher. Gopher tortoises have shovel-like front legs and strong, thick back legs to help them ...

Genetic tests have confirmed that a giant tortoise found on the Galápagos Islands is from a species which scientists thought had died out more than a century ago. The single female was discovered ...

Turtles and tortoises are fascinating reptiles known for their hard, protective shells and ancient lineage. While all ...

And you certainly don't want any uninvited guests. That is, unless your guest is Yoshi, a tortoise who was determined to walk down the aisle at his parent's wedding. As one of the guests at the ...

Chas is mom to her pet tortoise named Fig. She got him back in 2022 and started putting him in cute costumes. For Halloween that year, he wore a fancy cowboy hat that he wore again last year ...