[HOME] HOW TO CARE FOR AUSTRALIAN FRESHWATER TORTOISES Page 14 BEHAVIOUR AND INTELLIGENCE Although to humans tortoises appear to be stupid on some ways, this is because we do not always understand their behaviour, and because we expect them to behave as we would ourselves behave in a given situation. This 'anthropomorphism' is the cause of our underestimation of the intelligence levels of many other animals. Their code is different from ours - they would probably consider humans to be quite stupid! Animals sense many things that we cannot : their bodies are finely tuned to an enormous range of smells, tastes, vibrations, wavelengths and even electromagnetic fields. Their reasoning, obviously, is also different from ours. We have yet to devise a suitable intelligence test for tortoises. Richard Haas [reference 4] says that tortoises "... can learn to discriminate between white and black, between vertical and horizontal lines, between lines of varying width and between various colours. Some have the rudiments of a kind of social organisation shown by the 'pecking order' established in a captive group of tortoises       [Tortoises] of the same species become recognisable as individuals to their owners because of the 'personality' of each.   Possession of a personality indicates some degree of intelligence."   Furthermore, tortoises "... possess a finely-tuned ability to detect vibrations coming to them through the water or ground and an excellent sense of touch.   The sense of taste and smell are believed to be well developed." Tortoises of the Chelidae have exceptionally keen sight out of water, and very good hearing. In fact, their five senses all either match, or are superior to, our own. They can be trained, with patience and consistency, to eat out of your hand and to come when you call or whistle.                              i As mentioned before, they are social animals, and prefer the company of other tortoises. By themselves they get lonely. However as they grow older watch for aggressive ones that may intimidate others by biting and pushing. These should be separated from the rest until they learn to coexist peaceably. Tortoises instinctively love to hide, wedging themselves amongst rocks for protection if they are frightened, or half-burying themselves in gravel. They are very shy creatures. Some adult tortoises love to be stroked gently on the underside of their necks. Here is an interesting anecdote gathered from a past Curator of Reptiles at the Melbourne Zoo, Mr Roy Dunn. There was a pool containing tortoises, around which crowds of visitors would gather daily. The tortoises took no notice of their noisy audience. However when Mr Dunn would appear amongst the crowd, the tortoises recognised his face as the man who provided the food, and they would swim furiously straight towards him.   He did not have to make a sound - they knew him by sight. Slow-witted animals? THE AGE OF TORTOISES To tell how old a tortoise is you must look at the shields of the carapace. A new perimeter is added to each shield each year as the tortoise grows. This results in an annual 'growth ring'. Count the centre of the shield as year one. Each additional ring indicates a year of life. This method of age determination is not always reliable as growth rings can wear away. Tortoises periodically shed the outer covering of their shields as they grow; this also helps obliterate growth signs. As mentioned earlier, tortoises can live for up to 200 years. MENU: Tortoise Descriptions: PAGE 1 PAGE 2 PAGE 3 Indoor Living Quarters: PAGE 4 PAGE 5 PAGE 6 PAGE 7 PAGE 8 PAGE 9 Outdoor Living Quarters: PAGE 10 Feeding: PAGE 11 Hibernation: PAGE 12 Ailments: PAGE 13 Behaviour and Intelligence: PAGE 14 How Old is the Tortoise? PAGE 14 Dangers: PAGE 15 Reproduction and Sexual Differences PAGE 15 References: PAGE 16