Kleinmann's tortoise
species of reptile
Kleinmann's tortoise (Testudo kleinmanni), also called commonly the Egyptian tortoise, Leith's tortoise, and the Negev tortoise, is a critically endangered species of cryptodire turtle in the family Testudinidae. The species is native to Libya and possibly extinct in Egypt. The species was once more widespread, but its numbers are now dwindling, and complete extinction in the wild is a looming threat unless more actions are taken to protect this species.
Etymology
The specific name, kleinmanni, is in honor of Edouard Kleinmann, a French stockbroker who collected the holotype in 1875.
The specific name, werneri (of the synonym Testudo werneri), is in honor of Israeli herpetologist Yehudah L. Werner.
Description
Kleinmann's tortoise is the smallest tortoise in the Northern Hemisphere. Females are larger than males; males are more slender and have a longer tail.
The carapace has a high dome, and ranges in color from ivory to pale gold to dark brown to pink or dull yellow. This allows the paler tortoise to stay in the desert heat for longer. It is also an effective camouflage in the desert.
The public source identifies “Kleinmann's tortoise” as species of reptile. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Kleinmann's, tortoise and species.
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Datasets, specimens, observations and peer-reviewed methods provide the appropriate test for the technical claims summarized here. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jun 11, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q253781. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 1875.
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This entry incorporates text from “Kleinmann's tortoise” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.