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We used to stay at the Manasota Beach Club, and they had quite a population of gopher tortoises there that were quite tolerant of humans. We wish the ones we have around here would be like that. This one in the video above has likely been around here for a while, but this is the first time we can recall seeing one this size. There is another smaller one in a burrow nearby, but we have only seen him once out and about. I put up a game camera every now and again to monitor his burrow just to make sure he is still here.
I thought at one time registering as a gopher tortoise relocation spot, but the hoops you have to jump through and the red tape proved to be more than I wanted to put up with.
It's like the time that I rescued a box turtle nest from the predations of a family of raccoons. I watched the female lay her eggs right outside our bedroom window, and not more than 10 minutes after she was done, the raccoons came in and started to dig up the eggs. One of the four had been damaged, but I had hopes for the other three and set them up hoping they would hatch. Anyway, I contacted Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission about them, and I thought they were going to lock me up for illegally poaching box turtle eggs. I think I sort of got them to shut up when I asked them that if in the future they are recommending that I just let the raccoons destroy the nest and eat the eggs. (Speak into the microphone, please!) One of the eggs did hatch and we released it down close to our stream.
Yeah, my mistake for calling them, but what a bunch of boneheads, IMHO.
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