Scientific Name: Malacochersus tornieri
	Geographical Range: Southern Kenya and Northern and Eastern Tanzania
	Habitat: Rocky hills, outcrops in arid scrub and savanna. Altitudes from 100 to 6,000 feet.
	Diet in the Wild: Herbivores, feed mostly on grass and fallen fruits. Diet in the Zoo: Fed fruit salad and lettuce. Emerge to eat in early morning hours.
	Conservation Status: Not protected.
	Location in the Zoo: Herpetarium
Physical Description: Small and flat with a thin, flexible shell. Shell is normally 6 to 7 inches long and 1 inch high; usaually the shell has radiating dark lines on the carapace(upper part of the shell). They also have bigger scales on their legs with points that project downward and outward. Juveniles have pale yellow top shellwith black seams and yellow rays. Some may have brown spots on their back. The plastron, bottom part of shell, is also pale yellow but with dark brown seams and light yellow rays. Males can be distinguished from the females by their larger and longer tails; also they are smaller than the females and have less distinctive patterns on their shell. ***The shell is so thin and flexible that the plastron moves in and out when the animal breathes.***	Social Organization::  Live in colonies but the colonies are usually isolated from each other.  Within one habitat they coexist and many individuals may share the same crevice.
Special Adaptations: Since the tortoise is so small and could easily be torn apart by predators it relies on its speed and flexibility to escape from dangerous situations. When disturbed or frightened it hides in the crevices of the rocks it lives near, then it puffs its body up with air so that it cannot be removed and the predator cannot come in.Also this animal can climb rocks vertically. Because its habitat, the rocks and hills, is so dangerous the turtles have become very fast and because they are so light they can turn themselves over with ease if they fall on their back.
Reproductive Behavior:  In the wild breeding is in January-February with nesting in July-August.They lay eggs that are about two inches long. The eggs can incubated at about 30 degrees Celsius for 140 to 190 days. Combat between males prior to bredding can lead to better reproductive success.  In captivity breeding can be any time of the year.	The Animal at the Zoo: The Pancake Tortoise is not found at the Fort Worth Zoo but there is a couple at the Sacremento Zoo in California. From my research I found that most of these tortoises are endangered and bred privately and the Sacramento Zoo managed to breed a few in incubators. I was not able to observe this animal.
	Page Author: Tiffany Garcia and mail to:    tiffanye1984@yahoo.com   Sources and Links: Connor, Michael J. Pancake Tortoise, Malacochersus tornieri. Tortuga Gazette 28(11): 1-3, November 1992. <http://www.totoise.org/archives/malaco.html>. Kirkpatrick, David T. Ph. D. The Pancake Tortoise. Reptile & Amphibian Magazine, May/June 1993 1-3. <http://www.unc.edu/~dtkirkpa/stuff/pancake.html>. Dr. h.c.Grzimek, Bernhard Grzimek's Animal Life Encyclopedia 6 Reptiles. Van Nostrand Reinhold Company. New York: New York 1975. 101-102. Honolulu Zoo. African Pancake Tortoise. 4 October 2002. <http://www.honoluluzoo.org/african_pancake_tortoise.htm>.