The Mojave desert tortoise (Gopherus agassizii) is listed in the U.S. Endangered Species Act as threatened and is protected under this federal law as well as the Nevada Administrative Code (NAC 50.080). The desert tortoise is part of the Clark County Multiple Species Habitat Conservation Plan (MSHCP) and it is illegal to remove, harm, or harass a desert tortoise. Only properly permitted individuals or companies are allowed to handle wild desert tortoises.
Clark County offers free desert tortoise pick-up services. If a desert tortoise wanders into your construction site, please call the Desert Tortoise Pick-up Hotline at (702) 593-9027. Knight & Leavitt Associates offers tortoise training through the Worker Environmental Awareness Program (WEAP).
Fun Facts About the Desert Tortoise
- A wild desert tortoise can live up to 50 years and a tortoise in captivity can live as long as 100 years!
- Adult tortoises can weigh up to 15 pounds and a hatchling can weigh between 25 to 50 grams.
- The Mojave desert tortoise has habitat in the Mojave and Colorado deserts in southwestern Utah, southern Nevada, southeastern California, and northwestern Arizona.
- Desert tortoises will spend up to 95% of their time in their underground burrows which they dig in dry gravelly soil beneath creosote bushes or other large shrubs in open desert, or in the banks of washes.
- The largest desert tortoise recorded in southern Nevada was over 17 inches long and weighed more than 26 pounds.
Source: Clark County Desert Conservation Program
Protecting the Desert Tortoise and Its Habitat
- Always stay on existing roads or within the designated construction zone.
- Do not drive over desert vegetation.
- Respect all fencing and gates. Gates should always be securely closed.
- Drive slow! Desert tortoises will cross through the road.
- Always check under stationary vehicles or equipment before moving. Tortoises will hang out in the shade of your vehicle.
- Do not litter or drop food items. This can attract not only tortoises but also their predators.
- Dogs should always be on a leash.
- A desert tortoise should only be handled if it is in immediate danger (i.e. in the middle of a road where it could be run over).
- If you encounter a desert tortoise in the wild do not pick it up, touch it, feed it, or otherwise harass it.
If you are a developer or a construction worker and a desert tortoise wanders onto your construction site please immediately call the Desert Tortoise Pick-up Hotline (702) 593-9027 and a biologist will come to pick the tortoise up. If the tortoise is in immediate danger, please carefully pick up and place the tortoise in a box and place that box in a cool location until a biologist arrives. Please DO NOT leave the tortoise inside of a vehicle.
For employee desert tortoise training inquiries please contact our main office at (702) 897-2628 or email office@klaenv.com.