Don Reid Bourou Robert Mahatoly Joby Sibo Clement Lora L. Smith 1999 <p><span>From 1993 to 1995, field surveys were conducted in western Madagascar to assess the current status of the angonoka tortoise (</span><i>Geochelone yniphora</i><span>) in the wild. Tortoise presence was documented at 10 of 11 localities surveyed. These localities represent at least five populations, all within a 30-km radius of Baly Bay, near the town of Soalala. The populations occur on fragments of habitat ranging from &lt;50 to 4&ndash;6000 ha in size. One hundred and forty-five tortoises were marked in the five populations. Hatchling or juvenile tortoises were observed in all populations, indicating that reproduction was occurring. Most of the 145 tortoises (68%) were marked on Cape Sada, where monthly surveys were conducted. The tortoise density on the c. 150 ha peninsula was 0.66 tortoises/ha. The remains of 22 dead juveniles were found on Cape Sada over the 2-year period. This evidence, combined with the low number of juveniles in intermediate size classes in the Cape Sada population suggests that juvenile mortality may be high.</span></p> application/pdf 10.1016/S0006-3207(99)00044-0 en Elsevier Status and distribution of the angonoka tortoise (<i>Geochelone yniphora</i>) of western Madagascar article