# data[].attributes.body
An average tortoise weighs 8-15 pounds, is 9-15 inches long, and 4-6 inches high. They have a long lifespan for a creature of their size - between 80 and 100 years, which is longer than the average human's lifespan (70 to 80 years). They are found in the Mojave and Sonoran Deserts in southeastern California, southern Nevada, and south through Arizona into Mexico.

They are interesting because most of their life is spent underground;  they are only on the surface about five percent of their unusually long lives.

There are many amazing things about the desert tortoise that many people aren't aware of. One thing most people don't know is that they can live in area where the ground temperature exceeds 140ºF. They are able to do this because they can use their strong and muscular forelimbs for burrowing into the ground where it is cooler.

A group of tortoise is called a creep.

Tortoise can smell with their throats.

# data[].attributes.body
Most species of tortoise sleep during the dark, night hours and wakes up to hunt when the sun rises in the morning but in places where it is very hot throughout the day, tortoises will often venture out to find food in the cooler dawn and dusk periods.
Most species of tortoise have a herbivorous diet eating grasses, weeds, flowers, leafy greens, cactus, and fruits. Adults can live a year without water, which is important because of the lack of water in the desert. They have adapted their bodies so that water that reaches the bladder is not lost but can be redrawn to be used again. They also make rain basins to collect water. They remember where the water sources are, and return to drink the water. These abilities help them because the desert is a dry place and water is very scarce.

# data[].attributes.body
Tortoises have a hard outer shell to protect them from predators but the skin on the legs, head and belly of the tortoise is quite soft so the tortoise is able to retract it's limbs into it's shell to protect itself. Their coloring allows them to blend easily with rocks and sand.

# data[].attributes.body
Deserts are very dry.  They have hot days and cold nights.

We live close to the Mojave Desert.  The desert is the perfect home for tortoise because they can burrow underground to escape the hot temperatures and there are very few predators.  Tortoise need very little water to survive and can live a year without water.