. The reptiles of western North America, an account of the species known to inhabit California and Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Utah, Nevada, Arizona, British Columbia, Sonora and Lower California. ld pursue their accustomedactivities with people about. Some of their habits are worthyof notice. When one tortoise meets another in the course of itsjourneying each, whatever the sex, nods its head rapidlyup and down as if in salutation, and sometimes noses aretouched before passing along. If two males happen to meet,a fight is likely to ensue. After the preliminary nodding thetortoises separate a li
. The reptiles of western North America, an account of the species known to inhabit California and Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Utah, Nevada, Arizona, British Columbia, Sonora and Lower California. ld pursue their accustomedactivities with people about. Some of their habits are worthyof notice. When one tortoise meets another in the course of itsjourneying each, whatever the sex, nods its head rapidlyup and down as if in salutation, and sometimes noses aretouched before passing along. If two males happen to meet,a fight is likely to ensue. After the preliminary nodding thetortoises separate a little distance and then rush toward oneanother with the heads drawn part way into the shell. Thecombatants meet head on and the curved horns projectingfrom the anterior end of the plastron are butted rather vio-lently against the adversary, but do him no damage exceptsometimes to turn him upon his back5 he may then strugglefor some time with one fore leg vibrating vigorously in theair and the other pawing for a foothold in the ground beforehe can right himself. The males court their mates by biting them gently Oc. Iaii ks Cm . A(\i). Si. I,, \iii . \ I \ \s I )i s iir I Il \ 1 r 1 27. o c 54. GOPHERUS 993 around the edges of the shell. During copulation the malestamps his hind feet and utters a mechanical grunt with thehead hooked over the end of the plastron and the mouth halfopen. Stephens (1914, p. 135) writes that teeth marks aresometimes seen on shells of living tortoises and believes thatthe shells generally prove too hard for the coyotes. Theyounger tortoises are soft-shelled and delicate. They prob-ably fall prey in numbers to raptorial mammals and old ones are a favorite delicacy among the Indian andMexican section-hands who live with their families alongthe railroad lines. Some tortoises kept as curiosities atNeedles on a grass plot in front of the Santa Fe hotel arethought to have been gradually depleted by the inroads ofthe Indians, many of whom loung
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