The Gopher Tortoise: A vital Honeymoon Island Species

With the at Honeymoon Island State Park thankfully , one of northern Pinellas County’s most pristine jewels remains protected—and with it, the habitat of the gopher tortoise, an important but threatened species.

I love catching the occasional glimpse of this ancient land tortoise when I visit the park. I often forego the beaches at Honeymoon Island for the Osprey Trail, a 2.5-mile loop through one of the last virgin slash pine stands in southern Florida where you are almost guaranteed to witness ospreys circling overhead or nesting in pine snags. If you are lucky, you might even chance upon a gopher tortoise meandering across your path. On one of my most memorable hikes along the trail, I saw several scuttling at what was likely top speed for the slow-moving creatures as a summer storm approached. The proposed campground could have disturbed the tortoises’ habitat and may have resulted in their relocation.

Why so much concern for the gopher tortoise? 

The gopher tortoise is a threatened species in Florida, mainly due to serious losses to its habitat. It is believed to be one of the oldest living species in North America.  A keystone species of the pine-grasslands ecosystem, many other diverse species depend on the gopher tortoise for survival.  Of particular importance are its burrows: between 300 and 400 species rely on them for shelter, including three dozen that live in them year-round. A single gopher tortoise may occupy eight or more burrows, some of which it may have “inherited” from its ancestors.

Gopher tortoises are long-lived and slow to breed: it is believed that they may live past the age of 50 in the wild (and over 100 in captivity), and they do not reproduce until they are at least 18 years old. They feed on grasses and tender plants, which helps to spread seeds and promote new growth. 

Gopher tortoises depend on loose, well-draining soil to dig their burrows; new, tender plant life for food; and open, sunny areas to build nests. They rely on periodic summer fires to clear brush and provide fertile soil for new plant growth.  Where these conditions do not exist, gopher tortoises will move on in search of habitat that meets their needs. If they disappear from an area, dozens of species will eventually disappear, as well.

If gopher tortoises’ habitat on Honeymoon Island had been disturbed, then, entire species might have eventually disappeared from the park. It does not take much imagination to consider how this could have profoundly impacted the park’s fragile ecosystem.

With so little native habitat remaining in our area, it’s vital to preserve and protect what’s left as best we can. Thankfully, at least for the foreseeable future, Honeymoon Island will continue to provide habitat for the gopher tortoise and other species that rely on it for survival. 

To learn more about this important native species, read “Gopher Tortoise: A Species in Decline,” published by University of Florida IFAS Extension at  http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/uw048. You can also learn more about habitat conservation by taking a hike at Honeymoon Island and/or one of our many wonderful Pinellas County parks, such as Weedon Island and Brooker Creek. For more information, visit http://www.pinellascounty.org/park/default.htm