CreatureData

Central Asian tortoise

Testudo horsfieldii Gray, 1844

VUVulnerableturtles and tortoises

The central Asian tortoise (Testudo horsfieldii) is a reptile in the turtles and tortoises subgroup, belonging to the family Testudinidae and the genus Testudo. It is a medium-sized tortoise with a representative adult body mass of 1.018 kg.

Central Asian tortoise (Testudo horsfieldii)
Photo: Yuriy75 · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Quick facts about the central Asian tortoise

It reaches sexual maturity at 10 years, lays 4 eggs per clutch and 3 clutches per year, and its eggs incubate for 75.5 days. The IUCN Red List assesses it globally as Vulnerable (VU), an IUCN threatened category.

Weight
1.02 kgsrc for Weight
Length
up to 49.4 cmsrc for Length
Lifespan
Not recorded
Diet
Herbivoresrc for Diet
Longest recorded lifespan
40 years
Main food
Not recorded
Habitat
desert, shrublandsrc for Habitat
Egg incubation
75.5 dayssrc for Egg incubation
Young per litter or clutch
4src for Young per litter or clutch
Age at maturity
10 yearssrc for Age at maturity
Litters or clutches a year
3src for Litters or clutches a year
Reproduction
Eggssrc for Reproduction
Active
Day and night (cathemeral)src for Active
Lifestyle
Terrestrialsrc for Lifestyle
Conservation status
Vulnerable (IUCN)src for Conservation status
Countries on record
Not recorded

Photos of the central Asian tortoise

Only freely licensed photos are shown. Each carries its creator and licence.

Central Asian tortoise (Testudo horsfieldii)
Alexander A. Fomichev · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Central Asian tortoise (Testudo horsfieldii)
Alexander A. Fomichev · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Central Asian tortoise (Testudo horsfieldii)
Alexander A. Fomichev · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Central Asian tortoise (Testudo horsfieldii)
Alexander A. Fomichev · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Central Asian tortoise (Testudo horsfieldii)
Alexander A. Fomichev · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Central Asian tortoise (Testudo horsfieldii)
Nikolai Bulykin · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Central Asian tortoise (Testudo horsfieldii)
Nikolai Bulykin · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Where does the central Asian tortoise live?

Not recorded

What is the central Asian tortoise?

Quoted from WikipediaCC BY-SA 4.0

The Central Asian tortoise (Testudo horsfieldii), also commonly known as the Afghan tortoise, the steppe tortoise, the Russian tortoise (mainly in the pet trade), Horsfield's tortoise, the four-clawed tortoise, the four-toed tortoise, the Russian steppe tortoise, the Soviet tortoise, is a threatened species of tortoise in the family Testudinidae. The species is endemic to Central Asia from the Caspian Sea south through Iran, Pakistan and Afghanistan, and east across Kazakhstan to Xinjiang, China. Human activities in its native habitat contribute to its threatened status.

Two Testudo horsfieldii tortoises were the first Earth inhabitants to travel to and circle the Moon, on Zond 5 in September 1968.

From the Wikipedia article “Central Asian tortoise” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Central_Asian_tortoise&oldid=1370202324), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.

Is the central Asian tortoise endangered?

The central Asian tortoise is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List: it faces a high risk of extinction in the wild.

  1. LCLeast Concern
  2. NTNear Threatened
  3. VUVulnerable
  4. ENEndangered
  5. CRCritically Endangered
  6. EWExtinct in the Wild
  7. EXExtinct

Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Vulnerable species. What the categories mean.

How is the central Asian tortoise classified?

  1. kingdomAnimalia
  2. phylumChordata
  3. classReptilia
  4. orderTestudines
  5. familyTestudinidae
  6. genusTestudo
  7. SpeciesTestudo horsfieldii Gray, 1844

Synonyms Agrionemys bogdanovi, Agrionemys horsfieldi kazachstanica, Agrionemys horsfieldi rustamovi, Agrionemys kazachstanica kuznetzovi, Agrionemys kazachstanica terbishi, Homopus burnesii, Testudo baluchiorum, Testudo horsfieldii terbishi, Testudo kazachstanica terbishi

Other names and names in other languages (51)
  • Afghan tortoiseEnglish
  • Afghan tortoiseEnglish
  • Afghan tortoiseEnglish
  • Fergana Valley steppe tortoise [bogdanovi]English
  • Four-toed tortoiseEnglish
  • Four-toed tortoiseEnglish
  • Horsfield's tortoiseEnglish
  • Horsfield's tortoiseEnglish
  • Horsfield’s tortoiseEnglish
  • Kazakhstan steppe tortoise [kazachstanica]English
  • Kopet-Dag steppe tortoise [rustamovi]English
  • Russian tortoiseEnglish
  • Russian tortoiseEnglish
  • Steppe tortoiseEnglish
  • Steppe tortoiseEnglish
  • Turkmenistan steppe tortoise [kuznetzovi]English
  • سلحفاة روسيةArabic
  • سلحفاة هورسفيلدArabic
  • سلحفاة وسط آسيويةArabic
  • želva stepníCzech
  • Firtået LandskildpaddeDanish
  • SteppenschildkroteGerman
  • Russische LandschildkröteGerman
  • SteppenschildkröteGerman
  • VierzehenschildkröteGerman
  • Tortuga Terrestre AfganaSpanish
  • Tortuga rusaSpanish
  • Tortue d'HorsfieldFrench
  • Tortue de HorsfieldFrench
  • Tortue Des SteppesFrench
  • Tortue des steppes (La)French
  • Sztyeppi teknősHungarian
  • Testuggine di HorsfieldItalian
  • ホルスフィールドリクガメJapanese
  • ロシアリクガメJapanese
  • Дала тасбақасыKazakh
  • Ортаазия тасбақасыKazakh
  • 네발톱거북Korean
  • 러시아땅거북Korean
  • 중앙아시아거북Korean
  • VierteenlandschildpadDutch
  • Żółw stepowyPolish
  • Tartaruga-russaPortuguese
  • Степная черепахаRussian
  • Среднеазиатская черепахаRussian
  • Korytnačka stepnáSlovak
  • Rysk stäppsköldpaddaSwedish
  • Черепаха степоваUkrainian
  • Черепаха середньоазійськаUkrainian
  • 四爪陆龟Chinese
  • 四爪陸龜Chinese

Catalogue of LifeWikipediaiNaturalistITISTAXREFWikidataIUCN Red List

Relatives of the central Asian tortoise

Other species in the same genus Testudo.

CompareCentral Asian tortoise vs Hermann's tortoiseCentral Asian tortoise vs Greek tortoiseCentral Asian tortoise vs Negev tortoiseCentral Asian tortoise vs Margined tortoise

Common questions

Each answer is written from the sourced facts on this page, and only where they hold the answer.

What kind of animal is the central Asian tortoise?

The central Asian tortoise is a reptile in the turtles and tortoises subgroup, classified in the order Testudines and the family Testudinidae.

How heavy is the central Asian tortoise?

Its representative adult body mass is 1.018 kg, which places it in the medium size class.

Is the central Asian tortoise endangered?

It is listed as Vulnerable (VU) on the IUCN Red List in a global assessment, which is an IUCN threatened category.

How many eggs does the central Asian tortoise lay?

It lays 4 eggs per clutch and 3 clutches per year, and the eggs incubate for 75.5 days.

At what age does the central Asian tortoise reach maturity?

It reaches sexual maturity at 10 years (3,652 days).

Who named Testudo horsfieldii?

Testudo horsfieldii was named by Gray, 1844.

What are other names for the central Asian tortoise?

It is also called the Afghan tortoise, Steppe tortoise, Russian tortoise, Four-toed tortoise and Horsfield's tortoise.

Sources and how to cite this page

Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.

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APA

CreatureData. (2026). Central Asian tortoise (Testudo horsfieldii). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/central-asian-tortoise

MLA

“Central Asian tortoise (Testudo horsfieldii).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/central-asian-tortoise.

BibTeX
@misc{central_asian_tortoise_2026,
  title = {Central Asian tortoise (Testudo horsfieldii)},
  author = {{CreatureData}},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/central-asian-tortoise},
  note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}