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Tortoise and box turtle

Hermann's tortoise

Testudo hermanni

Kept the same way as the box turtle, red-footed tortoise and Russian tortoise, so they share one kit: the same heat, light, and humidity, sized to the animal.

See the gear

We are still putting together the setup for a Hermann's tortoise. Ask us and we will help you choose, or start with the gear below.

Photograph of a Hermann's tortoise
Photograph by Orchi, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Care sheet

What it needs

We have taken these figures from published sources and are still checking them against our own experience. Treat them as a guide, and ask us before you buy.

Basking surface
32 to 35°C Measured on the surface the animal lies on, not in the air.
Daytime air
21 to 29°C The cool end, away from the lamp.
Night air
18 to 21°C
UV index at the basking spot
2.9 to 7.4 Zone 3. Open or partial sun basker, thermoregulator
Humidity
40 to 60%
Daylight hours
14 h in summer, 10 h in winter
Winter
Hibernation A prepared, months-long dormancy. Not optional for this animal.
Where it lives
Arboreal
Adult length
12 to 23 cm
What it eats
Herbivore
When it is active
Diurnal
How it lives
Terrestrial

Our reading of the literature, not veterinary advice. Animals vary, and so do rooms, so take these figures, and any setup the builder puts together, as a starting point, and ask a reptile vet about your own animal. Where the figures come from.

From the catalogue

Gear that may suit a Hermann's tortoise

Matched to its size and care by the catalogue, not yet checked by us. Ask before you buy.

Same care group

Kept the same way

Where it comes from

E Spain (also introduced to the Balearics: Mallorca, Menorca), S France (incl. Corsica), Italy (incl. Sardinia, Sicily, Elba, Pianosa, Lampedusa island), Albania, Croatia (including some Adriatic islands), Bosnia and Hercegovina, Montenegro, Macedonia, Serbia, Bulgaria, Romania, Greece (incl. the Ionian Islands, Corfu = Corfou) E Turkey boettgeri: coastal regions of the former Yugoslavia, through Albania, Greece, Bulgaria, to the Black Sea.

Breeding: oviparous. Temperature‐dependent sex determination (TSD) fide Nemesházi & Bókony 2023.

Where the figures come from