Field-data on the madagascan flat tailed tortoise Pyxis (Acinixys) planicauda

During 1985 a population of Pyxis planicauda was studied in the forest of Amborompotsy in Western Madagascar. The habitat is a deciduous forest in a hot, semiarid climate. Observations are reported concerning morphometric data, growth, changes of colour and marking pattern, and foraging activities. Active tortoises are only found during the rainy season. The continuing forest destruction is a serious threat for the survival of P. planicauda which could not be found in farmland or anthropogenicsavanna-grassland.