NORWALK, CT – The Maritime Aquarium at Norwalk is celebrating the hatching of a leopard tortoise.
The hatchling is the first member of the turtle and tortoise family to be born at the Aquarium. It hatched on January 6. The parents could be any two of the six leopard tortoises added in a new display last summer.
“We are extremely proud of our biologists for broadening their range of animal-husbandry expertise,” said Barrett L. Christie, director of Animal Husbandry.
The tortoise weighed 10 grams upon hatching, but will not stay small. Leopard tortoises grow to an average of 40 pounds.
Christie said the hatchling tortoise will not be seen by Aquarium guests until it grows a little.
Leopard tortoises are native to central and southern Africa, from the Sudan down to the cape. They are known for their highly domed carapaces with attractive contrasting black-and-yellow patterns.
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