ROBERTSDALE, Ala. ( WKRG ) — Once a year, many of us head out to the farm to pick the perfect Christmas tree.
At a Christmas tree farm, you expect to see trees, wreaths, and possibly even a petting zoo. Would you ever expect to see a tortoise? Let alone a family of protected gopher tortoises?
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At Fish River Tree Farms in Robertsdale, it all started with one tortoise about 30 years ago. Now, they have multiplied. Fish River Tree Farms owner Steve Mannhard said now they have five large burrows, a lot of medium-sized burrows and a ton of little baby tortoise nests. He calls them his friends and works to protect them.
The gopher tortoise is native to the southeastern United States and is a protected species. The issue is, nowadays, there are not as many places for gopher tortoises to dig their burrows and make their homes.
“They are associated with long-leaf pine ecosystems, which historically in the SE US would have been one of the most dominant ecosystems,” University of South Alabama biology professor Jason Strickland said. “Now, there is less than 5% of it remaining.”