Making Oddkin
Rob Hollander | November 2020
My name sake is Polyphemus, the cave dwelling giant of Greek mythology. But I am no giant. I am only 15 inches long at most and maybe 14 pounds. However, my species is older than the stories of Greek mythology themselves. In fact, my species has been around for 60 million years. I am one of the oldest living species this world has ever laid eyes upon. It is I, the mover of earth. It is I, the creator of sanctuaries for all who need it. I am the Gopher Tortoise.
Wait, what is that vibration? I'd hate to leave the safety of my burrow but this vibration is making it hard to sleep, and now that I mention it. I could use some food. Up I go! It's a long trek, but I'm a young 20 years of age so I can handle it. This burrow I made a week ago spans 40 feet long and 10 feet deep with many tunnel ways, not bad for my moderate stature. While I'm not the fastest critter, nor do I have a long stride. I'll make it eventually.
Woah. What are these? No, no, I’ve heard about these. My brother, the southeastern beach mouse, had warned me a few days ago when they saw me passing by my old burrow that they now inhabit3 . They told me that “those humans made another Death Valley.” The only reason I survived my last encounter with Death Valley was because one kind human helped me across. I've seen it before. My home is cut in half yet again. Critters flattened by machines. My food, destroyed. It is all too familiar. Why is this happening more often? I moved as far away as I could. I am not made to travel far. I cannot live in the environments I'm being forced to encroach on. wetlands are no good for digging. My food will not grow in heavily shaded areas. Do I go back? Can I go back?
Well, let me go check out this new Death Valley. Maybe it's not as big as the last one.
At last, I arrived at the scene. Oh! Hey, sister! It is the Eastern Indigo Snake that frequents my burrows to escape the Florida heat3. They did not respond. Instead they gazed at the horror before us, Death Valley. I can see the look in their eyes, they accepted the invitation to Hades party. I declined, although it is tempting. There just is not much room left. My sister slithers off. The all too familiar scene played out once more. The pavement gets a new shade of red.
I turn around to head back to my burrow. Today I do not eat, only sleep.
The next day I head out of my burrow for food. I check out Death Valley once more. No machines? That is odd. Hold on... What is that smell? Is there a bushfire coming? I look up at the long-leaf pine trees and see another frequent visitor to my burrows, the Grasshopper Sparrow. Mrs. Sparrow, Over here! What is happening, can you give me a birds eye view? “You better hurry back to your burrow, Gopher Tortoise! A fire is coming, and quickly!”
I scramble back to the closest burrow, I like to make lots of burrows so my family can use them anytime they need. My elephant-like hind legs move me with gusto, much faster than the average tortoise. I can see the flames encroaching fast. I made it, and it looks like some of my family made it too. On my way down I can see a rattlesnake, a gopher frog, two skunks, a fox, two opossums, and countless bugs. Phew! Good thing I made this burrow extra big with lots of tunnel ways. Luckily, we are all safe here and we can wait for the flames to pass. In this moment, family is all that matters.
The flames go by quickly. It's over in minutes but it feels like an eternity. Especially since I am in here with a few critters that, well, even though we are family and rely on one another, we don't really get along. But in times like these we don’t mind. There are bigger problems we have to face. I hope my other families were able to reach my old burrows in time. Once the flames pass, we all leave the burrow quickly. The rattlesnake doesn't care for us much and gets angry quite easily. Although it is still smoking, the ground is not hot enough to bother me, my skin is incredibly tough. I spotted some delicious lichen that survived the fire and after all that running I think now is a good time to fill my belly!
Hey, Hey! Put me down! No, no, no, not again! I'm trying to eat! A... a cage? I am no threat, what are you doing human?
“Hello, Gopher Tortoise. Do not worry. You are being relocated to a research facility where you will be protected. Nobody can harm you. We are moving you to a sanctuary.”
You cannot do this to me, this is my home! My home is not only my home, hundreds of species including mammals, reptiles, birds, and invertebrates need me! Though we don’t appear to be related, we are family! If I go, many of them will not survive!
“That is precisely it, Gopherus Tortoise. Your burrows are engineering masterpieces. You are a keystone species. You are vital to the life of well over 300 distinct species, many of them are threatened or endangered, just like you. You are vital to the life of many plants, too. You spread plants where they themselves cannot go. You increase their seeds' survival rate. You are the key to this ecosystem staying healthy. You help engineer stable environments for life to thrive.”
But...
“It is no longer safe here. This land will become a major citrus grove. All of the plants you see will be replaced by one or two citrus species. If you ate those, the humans would kill you. I will provide you with a safe place where you will not be disturbed again. You and the hundreds of other species that rely on you can begin to heal and thrive once more. Also, sorry-not-sorry about the fire. That was a controlled burn to clear land for this industry.”
I was one of 57 Gopher Tortoises left in that long-leaf pine ecosystem of Florida. Apparently citrus trees love well drained, sandier soils just as much as I do. Only, citrus is more important than me. While I am rich in family and I am of life-and-death importance to hundreds of species. I do not make the humans any money. To them, I am a nuisance. I hurt their profit by digging burrows on their agricultural land. It doesn't matter if the land was my home. For this reason, I am undervalued and overlooked.
That was 1979, 41 years ago I was saved from an almost certain death. I am now 61 years old. I have been relocated a few times now. I guess that protected land was not very good at protecting. I now live on the 120 acre Tortuga Trail, right on Florida Atlantic University's campus. Actually, make that 90 acres. They recently built a new football stadium right on the conservation area. I hear a new parking garage is coming soon. What are they conserving exactly? I thought I was protected, I thought my species was protected. What happened? In Louisiana, Georgia, Mississippi, Alabama, South Carolina, and Florida-- all the places my species inhabits, populations have been reliably declining. An 80% decline over the last century.
I am the Gopher Tortoise, an ecological engineer. My environmental impact is bigger than the legend of Polyphemus. I am paramount to the survival of over 300 species. Without me, the ecosystem I help engineer will fall apart. I help engineer the very ecosystem you rely on, humans. I am of the earth just like you, humans. We need each other. We are kin, do not forget that.
Sources
Public Affairs Office, NFESO. “Gopher Tortoise (Gopherus Polyphemus).” Official Web page of the U S Fish and Wildlife Service, November 20, 2019. https://www.fws.gov/northflorida/gophertortoise/gopher_tortoise_fact_sheet.html.
Smith, Rebecca & Tuberville, Tracey & Chambers, Angy & Herpich, Kris & Berish, Joan. (2005). Gopher tortoise burrow surveys: External characteristics, burrow cameras, and truth. Applied Herpetology. 2. 161-170. 10.1163/1570754043492081.
Kent, Donald M., and Eddie Snell. “VERTEBRATES ASSOCIATED WITH GOPHER TORTOISE BURROWS IN ORANGE COUNTY. FLORIDA.” FLORIDA FIELD NATURALIST 2 2, no. 1 (1994): 8–10.
White, K. & Tuberville, Tracey. (2017). Birds and Burrows: Avifauna Use and Visitation of Burrows of Gopher Tortoises At Two Military Sites In the Florida Panhandle. The Wilson Journal of Ornithology. 129. 791-802. 10.1676/16-138.1.
Lips, Karen R. "Vertebrates Associated with Tortoise (Gopherus Polyphemus) Burrows in Four Habitats in South-Central Florida." Journal of Herpetology25, no. 4 (1991): 477-81. Accessed November 23, 2020. doi:10.2307/1564772.
Richardson, Jason C., "The Effects of Gopher Tortoise (Gopherus polyphemus) Herbivory on Plant Community Composition and Seed Germination, and The Effects of Gut Passage on the Germinability of Seeds: A Meta-Analysis" (2018). Graduate Theses and Dissertations. https://scholarcommons.usf.edu/etd/7706
Rob Hollander | November 2020
My name sake is Polyphemus, the cave dwelling giant of Greek mythology. But I am no giant. I am only 15 inches long at most and maybe 14 pounds. However, my species is older than the stories of Greek mythology themselves. In fact, my species has been around for 60 million years. I am one of the oldest living species this world has ever laid eyes upon. It is I, the mover of earth. It is I, the creator of sanctuaries for all who need it. I am the Gopher Tortoise.
Wait, what is that vibration? I'd hate to leave the safety of my burrow but this vibration is making it hard to sleep, and now that I mention it. I could use some food. Up I go! It's a long trek, but I'm a young 20 years of age so I can handle it. This burrow I made a week ago spans 40 feet long and 10 feet deep with many tunnel ways, not bad for my moderate stature. While I'm not the fastest critter, nor do I have a long stride. I'll make it eventually.
Woah. What are these? No, no, I’ve heard about these. My brother, the southeastern beach mouse, had warned me a few days ago when they saw me passing by my old burrow that they now inhabit3 . They told me that “those humans made another Death Valley.” The only reason I survived my last encounter with Death Valley was because one kind human helped me across. I've seen it before. My home is cut in half yet again. Critters flattened by machines. My food, destroyed. It is all too familiar. Why is this happening more often? I moved as far away as I could. I am not made to travel far. I cannot live in the environments I'm being forced to encroach on. wetlands are no good for digging. My food will not grow in heavily shaded areas. Do I go back? Can I go back?
Well, let me go check out this new Death Valley. Maybe it's not as big as the last one.
At last, I arrived at the scene. Oh! Hey, sister! It is the Eastern Indigo Snake that frequents my burrows to escape the Florida heat3. They did not respond. Instead they gazed at the horror before us, Death Valley. I can see the look in their eyes, they accepted the invitation to Hades party. I declined, although it is tempting. There just is not much room left. My sister slithers off. The all too familiar scene played out once more. The pavement gets a new shade of red.
I turn around to head back to my burrow. Today I do not eat, only sleep.
The next day I head out of my burrow for food. I check out Death Valley once more. No machines? That is odd. Hold on... What is that smell? Is there a bushfire coming? I look up at the long-leaf pine trees and see another frequent visitor to my burrows, the Grasshopper Sparrow. Mrs. Sparrow, Over here! What is happening, can you give me a birds eye view? “You better hurry back to your burrow, Gopher Tortoise! A fire is coming, and quickly!”
I scramble back to the closest burrow, I like to make lots of burrows so my family can use them anytime they need. My elephant-like hind legs move me with gusto, much faster than the average tortoise. I can see the flames encroaching fast. I made it, and it looks like some of my family made it too. On my way down I can see a rattlesnake, a gopher frog, two skunks, a fox, two opossums, and countless bugs. Phew! Good thing I made this burrow extra big with lots of tunnel ways. Luckily, we are all safe here and we can wait for the flames to pass. In this moment, family is all that matters.
The flames go by quickly. It's over in minutes but it feels like an eternity. Especially since I am in here with a few critters that, well, even though we are family and rely on one another, we don't really get along. But in times like these we don’t mind. There are bigger problems we have to face. I hope my other families were able to reach my old burrows in time. Once the flames pass, we all leave the burrow quickly. The rattlesnake doesn't care for us much and gets angry quite easily. Although it is still smoking, the ground is not hot enough to bother me, my skin is incredibly tough. I spotted some delicious lichen that survived the fire and after all that running I think now is a good time to fill my belly!
Hey, Hey! Put me down! No, no, no, not again! I'm trying to eat! A... a cage? I am no threat, what are you doing human?
“Hello, Gopher Tortoise. Do not worry. You are being relocated to a research facility where you will be protected. Nobody can harm you. We are moving you to a sanctuary.”
You cannot do this to me, this is my home! My home is not only my home, hundreds of species including mammals, reptiles, birds, and invertebrates need me! Though we don’t appear to be related, we are family! If I go, many of them will not survive!
“That is precisely it, Gopherus Tortoise. Your burrows are engineering masterpieces. You are a keystone species. You are vital to the life of well over 300 distinct species, many of them are threatened or endangered, just like you. You are vital to the life of many plants, too. You spread plants where they themselves cannot go. You increase their seeds' survival rate. You are the key to this ecosystem staying healthy. You help engineer stable environments for life to thrive.”
But...
“It is no longer safe here. This land will become a major citrus grove. All of the plants you see will be replaced by one or two citrus species. If you ate those, the humans would kill you. I will provide you with a safe place where you will not be disturbed again. You and the hundreds of other species that rely on you can begin to heal and thrive once more. Also, sorry-not-sorry about the fire. That was a controlled burn to clear land for this industry.”
I was one of 57 Gopher Tortoises left in that long-leaf pine ecosystem of Florida. Apparently citrus trees love well drained, sandier soils just as much as I do. Only, citrus is more important than me. While I am rich in family and I am of life-and-death importance to hundreds of species. I do not make the humans any money. To them, I am a nuisance. I hurt their profit by digging burrows on their agricultural land. It doesn't matter if the land was my home. For this reason, I am undervalued and overlooked.
That was 1979, 41 years ago I was saved from an almost certain death. I am now 61 years old. I have been relocated a few times now. I guess that protected land was not very good at protecting. I now live on the 120 acre Tortuga Trail, right on Florida Atlantic University's campus. Actually, make that 90 acres. They recently built a new football stadium right on the conservation area. I hear a new parking garage is coming soon. What are they conserving exactly? I thought I was protected, I thought my species was protected. What happened? In Louisiana, Georgia, Mississippi, Alabama, South Carolina, and Florida-- all the places my species inhabits, populations have been reliably declining. An 80% decline over the last century.
I am the Gopher Tortoise, an ecological engineer. My environmental impact is bigger than the legend of Polyphemus. I am paramount to the survival of over 300 species. Without me, the ecosystem I help engineer will fall apart. I help engineer the very ecosystem you rely on, humans. I am of the earth just like you, humans. We need each other. We are kin, do not forget that.
Sources
Public Affairs Office, NFESO. “Gopher Tortoise (Gopherus Polyphemus).” Official Web page of the U S Fish and Wildlife Service, November 20, 2019. https://www.fws.gov/northflorida/gophertortoise/gopher_tortoise_fact_sheet.html.
Smith, Rebecca & Tuberville, Tracey & Chambers, Angy & Herpich, Kris & Berish, Joan. (2005). Gopher tortoise burrow surveys: External characteristics, burrow cameras, and truth. Applied Herpetology. 2. 161-170. 10.1163/1570754043492081.
Kent, Donald M., and Eddie Snell. “VERTEBRATES ASSOCIATED WITH GOPHER TORTOISE BURROWS IN ORANGE COUNTY. FLORIDA.” FLORIDA FIELD NATURALIST 2 2, no. 1 (1994): 8–10.
White, K. & Tuberville, Tracey. (2017). Birds and Burrows: Avifauna Use and Visitation of Burrows of Gopher Tortoises At Two Military Sites In the Florida Panhandle. The Wilson Journal of Ornithology. 129. 791-802. 10.1676/16-138.1.
Lips, Karen R. "Vertebrates Associated with Tortoise (Gopherus Polyphemus) Burrows in Four Habitats in South-Central Florida." Journal of Herpetology25, no. 4 (1991): 477-81. Accessed November 23, 2020. doi:10.2307/1564772.
Richardson, Jason C., "The Effects of Gopher Tortoise (Gopherus polyphemus) Herbivory on Plant Community Composition and Seed Germination, and The Effects of Gut Passage on the Germinability of Seeds: A Meta-Analysis" (2018). Graduate Theses and Dissertations. https://scholarcommons.usf.edu/etd/7706