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Gopherus

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Source Data

Source	ID	Link
Global Biodiversity Information Facility ID (GBIF)	Not linked to a GBIF record.
PaleoBioDB ID (PBDB)	37741	https://paleobiodb.org/classic/checkTaxonInfo?taxon_no=37741

Rank

genus (PBDB)

Taxonomy (PBDB)

Life : Animalia : Chordata : Reptilia : Testudines : Testudinidae : Gopherus

Classification
(PBDB,GBIF)

Rank	Name	Author
-	Eukaryota
-	Opisthokonta	Cavalier-Smith 1987
kingdom	Animalia
-	Triploblastica	Lankester 1877
-	Nephrozoa	Jondelius et al. 2002
-	Deuterostomia	Grobben 1908
phylum	Chordata	Haeckel 1847
subphylum	Vertebrata	Lamarck 1801
superclass	Gnathostomata	Gegenbauer 1874
-	Osteichthyes
-	Sarcopterygii	Romer 1955
subclass	Dipnotetrapodomorpha
subclass	Tetrapodomorpha
-	Tetrapoda
-	Reptiliomorpha	Säve-Söderbergh 1934
-	Anthracosauria	Säve-Söderbergh 1934
-	Batrachosauria
-	Cotylosauria
-	Amniota	Haeckel 1866
-	Sauropsida	Huxley 1864
class	Reptilia	Laurenti 1768
-	Testudinata
order	Testudines	Batsch 1788
suborder	Cryptodira	Cope 1868
-	Pantestudinoidea	Joyce et al. 2004
superfamily	Testudinoidea	Gray 1825
-	Pantestudinidae	Joyce et al. 2004
family	Testudinidae	Batsch 1788
genus	Gopherus	Rafinesque 1832

Common Name

gopher tortoise

Opinions (PBDB)

Name	Rank	Opinion	Evidence	Author
Gopherus	genus	belongs to Testudinidae	stated without evidence	Galbreath, 1953
Gopherus	genus	belongs to Testudinidae	implied	Carroll, 1988
Gopherus	genus	belongs to Testudinidae	stated with evidence	Hutchison, 1996
Gopherus	genus	belongs to Testudinidae	stated without evidence	Frank and Ramus, 1996
Gopherus	genus	belongs to Testudinidae	stated with evidence	Wall and Maddox, 1998
Gopherus	genus	belongs to Testudines	stated without evidence	Anquetin et al., 2009
Gopherus	genus	belongs to Testudinidae	stated with evidence	de la Fuente et al., 2014
Gopherus	genus	belongs to Testudinidae	stated without evidence	van Dijk et al., 2014
Gopherus	genus	belongs to Testudinidae	stated with evidence	Vlachos, 2018

Status (PBDB)

extant

Taxon Size (PBDB)

Extant Size (PBDB)

6 (40%)

First Recorded Appearance

37.2 - 33.9 Ma
Paleogene

Environment

terrestrial (based on Testudinidae)

Motility

actively mobile (based on Osteichthyes)

Diet

herbivore, herbivore (based on Testudinidae)

Reproduction

oviparous (based on Testudinidae)

Taphonomy

phosphatic (based on Vertebrata)

Primary Reference (PBDB)

R. L. Carroll. 1988. Vertebrate Paleontology and Evolution

Fossil Distribution

Subtaxa

Name	Status	Common Name(s)	Fossil Occurrences	Oldest	Youngest
Gopherus (Gopherus) ✝ subgenus	listed (PBDB)
Gopherus agassizii species	listed (PBDB)	Mojave Desert Tortoise	5	0.13 Ma Pleistocene	0 Ma Extant
Gopherus auffenbergi ✝ species	accepted (GBIF) listed (PBDB)		2	1.80 Ma Pleistocene	1.80 Ma Pleistocene
Gopherus berlandieri species	accepted (GBIF) listed (PBDB)				0 Ma Extant
Gopherus brevisternus ✝ species	accepted (GBIF) listed (PBDB)		1	30.8 Ma Oligocene	30.8 Ma Oligocene
Gopherus depressus ✝ species	accepted (GBIF) listed (PBDB)		2	20.4 Ma Miocene	20.4 Ma Miocene
Gopherus donlaloi ✝ species	accepted (GBIF) listed (PBDB)		1	0.30 Ma Pleistocene	0.30 Ma Pleistocene
Gopherus edae ✝ species	listed (PBDB)		5	24.8 Ma Oligocene	16.0 Ma Miocene
Gopherus flavomarginatus species	accepted (GBIF) listed (PBDB)				0 Ma Extant
Gopherus hexagonatus ✝ species	listed (PBDB)		9	4.90 Ma Pliocene	0.13 Ma Pleistocene
Gopherus laticuneus ✝ species	accepted (GBIF) listed (PBDB)		9	37.2 Ma Eocene	33.9 Ma Oligocene
Gopherus mohavensis ✝ species	listed (PBDB)		2	16.0 Ma Miocene	13.6 Ma Miocene
Gopherus morafkai species	accepted (GBIF) listed (PBDB)	Sonoran Desert Tortoise			0 Ma Extant
Gopherus polyphemus species	accepted (GBIF) listed (PBDB)	Florida Gopher Tortoise	33	4.90 Ma Pliocene	0 Ma Extant

Synonymy List

Year	Name and Author
1832	Gopherus Rafinesque
1857	Xerobates Agassiz
1937	Bysmachelys Johnston p. 447
1953	Gopherus Galbreath p. 38
1961	Testudo milleri Brattstrom p. 546
1971	Gopherus Auffenberg p. 116
1982	Scaptochelys Bramble p. 853 figs. 1-11
1988	Gopherus Carroll
1992	Xerobates Hutchison
1996	Gopherus Frank and Ramus
1996	Gopherus Hutchison p. 348
1996	Gopherus (Oligopherus) Hutchison p. 348
1998	Gopherus Wall and Maddox p. 11
2004	Gopherus Joyce et al.
2004	Gopherus Reynoso and Montellano-Ballesteros p. 823
2009	Gopherus Anquetin et al.
2014	Gopherus de la Fuente et al.
2014	Gopherus van Dijk et al.
2018	Gopherus Vlachos
2018	Oligopherus Vlachos
2019	Gopherus May
1832	Gopherus Rafinesque

Year	Name and Author
1857	Xerobates Agassiz
1930	Gopherus Hay p. 101
1937	Bysmachelys Johnston p. 447
1953	Gopherus Galbreath p. 38
1961	Testudo milleri Brattstrom p. 546
1971	Gopherus Auffenberg p. 116
1982	Scaptochelys Bramble p. 853
1988	Gopherus Carroll
1989	Gopherus Swingland and Klemens p. 124
1992	Xerobates Hutchison
1996	Gopherus Frank and Ramus
1996	Gopherus Hutchison p. 348
1996	Gopherus (Oligopherus) Hutchison p. 348
1998	Gopherus Wall and Maddox p. 11
2004	Gopherus Joyce et al.
2004	Gopherus Reynoso and Montellano-Ballesteros p. 823
2009	Gopherus Anquetin et al.
2014	Gopherus de la Fuente et al.
2014	Gopherus van Dijk et al.
2018	Gopherus Vlachos
2018	Oligopherus Vlachos
2019	Gopherus May

References

Carroll R. L. (1988) , Vertebrate Paleontology and Evolution, 1-698

Agassiz L. Contributions to the Natural History of the United States of America. First Monograph. Vol. I. Part I. Essay on Classi cation. Part II. North American Testudinata, 1-452

Johnston C. S. (1937) Osteology of Bysmachelys canyonensis a new turtle from the Pliocene of Texas, Journal of Paleontology 45 4, 439-447

Galbreath E. C. (1953) A contribution to the Tertiary geology and paleontology of northeastern Colorado, University of Kansas Paleontological Contributions Vertebrata 4, 1-120

Brattstrom B. H. (1961) Some new fossil tortoises from western North America with remarks on the zoogeography and paleoecology of tortoises, Journal of Paleontology 35 3, 543-560

Auffenberg W. (1971) A new fossil tortoise, with remarks on the origin of South American testudinines, Copeia 1971 1, 106-117

Bramble D. M. (1982) Scaptochelys: generic revision and evolution of gopher tortoises, Copeia 1982 4, 852-867

Hutchison J. H. (1992) Western North American reptile and amphibian record across the Eocene/Oligocene boundary and its climatic implications, D. R. Prothero and W. A. Berggren (eds.), Eocene-Oligocene Climatic and Biotic Evolution, 451-463

Frank N., Ramus E. (1996) A Complete Guide to Scientific and Common Names of Reptiles and Amphibians of the World, 1-377

Hutchison J. H. (1996) Testudines, The Terrestrial Eocene-Oligocene Transition in North America, 337-353

Joyce W. G., Parham J. F., et al (2004) Developing a protocol for the conversion of rank-based taxon names to phylogenetically defined clade names, as exemplified by turtles, Journal of Paleontology 78 5, 989-1013

Reynoso V.-H., Montellano-Ballesteros M. (2004) A new giant turtle of the genus Gopherus (Chelonia: Testudinidae) from the Pleistocene of Tamaulipas, México, and a review of the phylogeny and biogeography of gopher tortoises, Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 24 4, 822-837

Anquetin J., Barrett P. M., et al (2009) A new stem turtle from the Middle Jurassic of Scotland: new insights into the evolution and palaeoecology of basal turtles, Proceedings of the Royal Society B 276, 879-886 doi:10.1098/rspb.2008.1429

de la Fuente M. S., Sterli J., et al (2014) Origin, Evolution and Biogeographic History of South American Turtles, Springer Earth System Sciences doi:0.1007/978-3-319-00518-8

van Dijk P. P., Iverson J. B., et al (2014) Turtles of the World, 7th edition: annotated checklist of taxonomy, synonymy, distribution with maps, and conservation status, Chelonian Research Monographs 5, 329-479

Vlachos E. (2018) A Review of the Fossil Record of North American Turtles of the Clade Pan-Testudinoidea, Bulletin of the Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History 59 1, 3-94

May S. R. (2019) The Lapara Creek Fauna: Early Clarendonian of south Texas, USA, Palaeontologia Electronica 22.1.15, 1-129 doi:10.26879/929

Hay O. P. (1930) Second Bibliography and Catalogue of the Fossil Vertebrata of North America, Carnegie Institution of Washington 390 II, 1-1074

Data courtesy of: PBDB: The Paleobiology Database, Creative Commons CC-BY licenced. , GBIF: the Global Biodiversity Information Facility, various licences, iDigBio, various licences, and EOL: The Encyclopedia of Life (Open Data Public Domain). Because fossils are made of minerals too!

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