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Pancake Tortoise — Fact Sheet

Malacochersus tornieri · Pancake Tortoise

📋 At a glance

Adult size15-18 cm
Lifespan25-40 years
SubspeciesNo captive-care subspecies split.
OriginRocky kopjes and dry savanna areas of Kenya and Tanzania.
ActivityDiurnal
DifficultyExpert
Legal statusCITES: Appendix I; EU: Annex A; local rules still apply

🏠 Housing

  • Use anchored rock modules, bonded slate stacks, or artificial crevice systems rather than loose piles. Every piece must resist shifting, sliding, and crushing when pushed. Use secure lids or inward lips, smooth upper barriers, blocked cable exits, and hides that can be opened without pulling the tortoise out by force.

🌡️ Temperature

  • Basking spot: 34-38°C
  • Warm zone: 24-30°C
  • Cool zone: 22-25°C
  • Night: 18-22°C

🥬 Feeding

  • Feed a dryland herbivore diet based on weeds, grasses, leaves, and flowers. Small body size makes overfeeding rich greens a real risk. Offer high-fiber portions, regular calcium, and a shallow water dish that does not soak the substrate.

🩺 Common problems

  • The main risks are escape, crushed animals from unstable rocks, dehydration during hot periods, damp stagnant crevices, weak UVB, and illegal wild-caught origin.