MONTVERDE, Fla. (AP) - The spray-painted Florida tortoise who became an Internet sensation this week is back to its normal color.
The tortoise was completely covered in red spray paint and the animal's limbs were covered in concrete. The people who found the tortoise took it to an animal rehabilitation facility. The director says he's sleeping soundly and curious about his new environment.
Tortoises are cold-blooded animals that use their shells to control their body temperatures. The Orlando Sentinel reports a layer of paint can severely obstruct that ability. The animals also have veins and nerves running through their shell. Wildlife officials say it's illegal and harmful to the health of a gopher tortoise to apply man-made substances to it. Toxins from the paint also can leach into the tortoise and affect its internal organs.
The tortoise will be released in about 10 days.
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Information from: Orlando Sentinel, http://www.orlandosentinel.com/
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MONTVERDE, Fla. (WTXL) - The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission is offering a reward for information after a gopher tortoise was found completely covered in red spray paint.
They say the tortoise was found in the middle of County Road 455, south of Montverde, when two good Samaritans saw it and took it to a wildlife rehabber.
FWC says the tortoise was found completely covered in red spray paint and with concrete on its limbs and the top of its shell.
"It is both illegal and very harmful to the health of a gopher tortoise to apply man-made substances, such as paint or concrete, to any part of their body or shell," FWC officials wrote.
If you have any information about who may have applied the paint and concrete on the tortoise, you are asked to call the Wildlife Alert Hotline at 888-404-FWCC (3922), #FWC or *FWC on a cellphone, or text/email Tip@MyFWC.com.
Anyone contacting Wildlife Alert can remain anonymous and may be eligible for an unspecified reward.
Gopher tortoises are state-listed as threatened and are a protected species.
