Science
(2009-09-14)
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Courtesy: South Carolina Dept. of Natural Resources
Since 1987 the federal government has protected the animal's western habitat, which includes Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama.
Conservationists want to know whether its eastern habitat should also be protected.
Tom MacKenzie of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service says development is the biggest threat to the Gopher Tortoise.
"That doesn't mean everything stops. It just means we want to look at it closely. We obviously want to protect that species and allow people to do what people gotta do."
What makes the Gopher Tortoise unique is how far into the ground it burrows. About 360-different species use its burrows as refuge.
In Georgia it's found mostly south of Atlanta, from Augusta to Macon to the coast.
Jim Burress, WABE News.
© Copyright 2009, WABE
