Geometric Tortoise Conservation: Endangered Rare Animal Get New Home [PHOTOS]

Three conservation organizations are pulling together to create a safer home for one of the world's rarest reptiles: the geometric tortoise (Psammobates geometricus). The Rainforest Trust along with the Turtle Conservancy and South African Turtle Conservation Trust (SATCT) recently created a new reserve known as the Geometric Tortoise Preserve. This protected area spans 212 acres of threatened shrubland habitat located in the Upper Breede Valley of western South Africa and is expected to provide a safe haven for the last and largest viable population of geometric tortoise in the world, according to a news release.

"Considering the plight of the geometric tortoise, there was an obvious need to act swiftly to purchase and protect the last remnants of its natural habitat," Dr. Paul Salaman, CEO of Rainforest Trust, said in the release. "Thanks to our collaboration with the Turtle Conservancy and SATCT, nearly a fifth of all geometric tortoises are now protected, and there is good reason to believe that the new reserve will help set the stage for a comeback."

SATCT purchased the land this past August from a local sheep and grape farmer whose family had owned the land for generations, the Turtle Conservancy told Nature World News. This land was chosen based on the rather high density of geometric tortoises living in the area. The organization expects that the reserve will house between 100 and 200 geometric tortoises. (Scroll to read more...)

Often times within smaller animal populations inbreeding comes as a concern for the species' survival. Essentially, when there are fewer mating options, reproduction becomes less and less diverse. This too can ultimately affect the survival rate of a species. Therefore, conservationists aim to create captive populations that are large enough to be demographically stable and genetically healthy.

Due to habitat destruction, the geometric tortoises already exist in isolated patches. However, there is no evidence, so far, of inbreeding suppression, and populations living within the new reserve are sufficiently large enough that this should not be a problem, the Turtle Conservancy explained.

The Rainforest Trust hopes to partner with the Turtle Conservancy and SATCT again to further expand the reserve by 856 acres. To do this, the organizations plan to purchase a large adjacent property in the near future.

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