The tortoises are what ecologists call "ecosystem engineers." ...

Add Yahoo as a preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Wildlife Hospital and Conservation Center staff care for desert tortoise hatchlings Thursday at The Living Desert Zoo and Gardens ...

State wildlife officials are adopting out captive desert tortoises and reminding Arizonans why pets cannot be released into ...

A 3.5-million-acre swath of Mojave Desert between Ridgecrest and the Morongo Basin has received a new federal designation that advocates hope will help protect vulnerable wildlife like the Mojave ...

PHOENIX — They’re not fluffy, they don’t play fetch and they certainly don’t roll over. But there is such a thing as a lap tortoise. Dotty the desert tortoise climbs into the lap of Seyda Robertson in ...

This story is free to read because readers choose to support LAist. If you find value in independent local reporting, make a donation to power our newsroom today. Spotting a Mojave Desert tortoise is ...

Before they could find their new homes in the Southern Nevada desert, they first had to take a bath. No, this wasn’t some new hoop that prospective homebuyers have to jump through in Las Vegas’ ...

Here’s how you know a desert tortoise when you see one: It’s the thing that looks like it couldn’t possibly survive in the desert. They lumber along with these piston legs, like a stepstool that’s got ...

What has four scaly legs and spends 90% of its life underground? It could be your new pet. The Arizona Game and Fish Department’s desert tortoise adoption program began last week with more than 300 ...

A small desert community with a population of under 100 has expressed growing fears that its town will die without visits ...

Desert tortoises — the iconic reptile of the Mojave Desert — face plenty of dangers in the wild that scientists say pose long-term threats to the species: ravens, humans and climate change, to name a ...

PHOENIX (AP) — They’re not fluffy, they don’t play fetch and they certainly don’t roll over. But there is such a thing as a lap tortoise. What’s more, pet tortoises can wag their tails, will plod on ...