''Chersobius'' is a genus of tiny

tortoise Tortoises () are reptiles of the family Testudinidae of the order Testudines (Latin: ''tortoise''). Like other turtles, tortoises have a turtle shell, shell to protect from predation and other threats. The shell in tortoises is generally hard, ...

s in the family Testudinidae, endemic to

southern Africa Southern Africa is the southernmost subregion of the African continent, south of the Congo and Tanzania. The physical location is the large part of Africa to the south of the extensive Congo River basin. Southern Africa is home to a number of ...

. The genus includes the smallest tortoises in the world. All three species were previously assigned to the genus ''

Homopus ''Homopus'' is a genus of tiny tortoises in the family Testudinidae, endemic to southern Africa. Three species have been moved to the genus Chersobius. Naming As a group, these closely related species are commonly known in Europe and Africa a ...

''.

Naming

As a group, these closely related species are commonly known in Europe and Africa as padlopers (originally meaning "path-walkers" in

Afrikaans Afrikaans (, ) is a West Germanic language that evolved in the Dutch Cape Colony from the Dutch vernacular of Holland proper (i.e., the Hollandic dialect) used by Dutch, French, and German settlers and their enslaved people. Afrikaans gra ...

), due to their habit of making tiny pathways through vegetation. In other parts of the world, such as the United States, they are known as Cape tortoises.

Distribution

The genus is indigenous and endemic to

, one within

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

, one only in

Namibia Namibia (, ), officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa. Its western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Zambia and Angola to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and ea ...

, and one possibly spanning across the border region of both countries.

Species

The genus contains these species:

Conservation and captivity

They are threatened by

habitat destruction Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss and habitat reduction) is the process by which a natural habitat becomes incapable of supporting its native species. The organisms that previously inhabited the site are displaced or dead, thereby ...

, traffic on roads,

overgrazing Overgrazing occurs when plants are exposed to intensive grazing for extended periods of time, or without sufficient recovery periods. It can be caused by either livestock in poorly managed agricultural applications, game reserves, or nature res ...

, and poaching for the pet trade. Among the ''Chersobius'' species, ''C. signatus'' adapts well to captivity, as their diets are not highly specialized.Corton, M.
''Homopus'' (Padloper Tortoise) Care
World Chelonian Trust (retrieved August 20, 2013). The others do not generally survive well in captivity unless some effort is made to supply them with their natural food, that is, endemic plants from the Cape/Karoo regions. Many are taken from their natural habitat each year, and subsequently die as a result, as they do not readily adapt to typical captive diets and environment change. However, they can be very hardy in captivity, and most problems with captive care are caused by faulty nutrition, high humidity, or bad husbandry.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q55829765 Turtles of Africa Reptiles of South Africa Turtle genera Taxa named by Leopold Fitzinger