Hermann's tortoise

Profile

Length

adult shell 20–30 cm; the western subspecies stays smaller, at most about 22 cm

Weight

depends on subspecies and size; males usually stay smaller than females

Life span

over 80 years possible

Activity

active by day, herbivore, hibernates

Sources [1] [2]

Climate and light

Day

25–30 °C (77–86 °F)

Night

17–20 °C (63–68 °F)

Basking spot

35–45 °C (95–113 °F)

Humidity

40–60%

Light

Sunlight in the outdoor enclosure. On cool days and in the cold frame, a bright basking lamp with UVB as a substitute. Austria requires 6–14 hours of light depending on the season, and daily UV exposure.

These values apply to time spent in the cold frame or indoors. Outdoors, the weather decides, and a cold frame with a basking lamp makes up for cool and wet days. For outdoor keeping, Austria requires at least 15 °C (59 °F) during the day and at least 10 °C (50 °F) at night, and 60–80% humidity and daily misting for young tortoises. Damp digging spots help young tortoises in particular. Avoid waterlogging.

Sources [3] [2] [4] [5] [6]

Enclosure

Hermann's tortoises belong in an outdoor enclosure with a cold frame or greenhouse. Keeping them in the house or permanently in a terrarium does not meet their needs. The TVT recommends about 25 × 10 shell lengths, so about 10 m² for a 20 cm tortoise. Leipzig University gives at least 2 m² per adult, and the Swiss Federal Food Safety and Veterinary Office (BLV) advises two to three times the Swiss minimum area.

Substrate

Low in nutrients, lime-rich and quick to dry: a mix of soil, sand and clay, with gravel and coarse stones in places. Plus a sandy, sunny slope for laying eggs.

Setup

A cold frame or shelter with a bright basking lamp, and inside it or right next to it a burrow about 40 cm deep with leaves or bark mulch. Basking spots, shade under shrubs, hides, a shallow water bowl and a feeding spot on a stone slab. The fence is opaque, at least 40 cm high and sunk about 10 cm into the ground. Protect young tortoises from birds and predators with mesh.

Sources [1] [4] [5] [2] [3]

Minimum sizes

• GermanyGuideline

  Length 8 × shell length, width 4 × for two animals. At least 10% more floor area for the third and fourth animal, 20% more from the fifth on. Mainly outdoor keeping is recommended, indoors mostly for overwintering or in bad weather.

  Source [6]

• AustriaLaw

  1–2 animals up to 6 cm: 0.5 m² · 6–12 cm: 1.0 m² · over 12 cm: 2.0 m². Add 0.2 / 0.4 / 0.5 m² for each additional animal. The outdoor enclosure is sunny and sheltered from the wind, with a dry shelter, a mound for laying eggs and a water source.

  Source [3]

• SwitzerlandLaw

  For up to two animals, a floor area of 8 × 4 shell lengths, plus 2 × 2 shell lengths for each additional animal; with a 20 cm shell, that is 160 × 80 cm. Also outdoor access whenever the weather allows, ground the tortoises can dig in, hides and hibernation for all ages.

  Sources [7] [8]

Feeding

• All agesfrom hatchingdaily

  Wild greens, Hay · high in fiber and low in protein, also for young tortoises

Feed daily. In a large, planted outdoor enclosure the tortoises find part of their food themselves. Good choices are wild greens such as dandelion, ribwort and broadleaf plantain, clover, field bindweed and mallow, plus good hay or soaked hay cubes. Vegetables only occasionally, fruit only rarely. Commercial tortoise food usually has too much protein (at most 10% crude protein and 15–30% crude fiber is right). Always offer calcium, for example as cuttlebone. The sources disagree on whether extra vitamins are needed: the TVT considers them more likely to harm on a diet of wild greens, while the Leipzig leaflet recommends mineral and vitamin supplements. Fresh water in a shallow dish.

Sources [1] [5] [4] [2]

Shedding

Tortoises shed too. If pieces of skin stay stuck on the toes, the tail or around the mouth and eyes, have a vet look at it. Pyramiding (bumps on the shell) comes mainly from food that is too high in protein and growth that is too fast, and also from a lack of calcium or UV, or from keeping the tortoise too dry.

Sources [9] [1]

Brumation

A must for all ages, even in the first year of life: 8–16 weeks at 2–6 °C (36–43 °F), young tortoises under 200 g for 8–12 weeks. It should not get warmer than 6 °C (43 °F), or the tortoises wake up in between and use up their reserves. A fridge with slightly damp substrate or a frost-proof burrow in the enclosure works well; move the tortoise if ground frost threatens. Have a vet examine it first, and weigh it before and after hibernation. A weight loss of more than 5% is too much. Austria requires 3–5 months at 4–6 °C (39–43 °F), and Leipzig University gives 2–4 months at 2–6 °C (36–43 °F).

Sources [2] [1] [3] [4]

Breeding

Sexual maturity

usually at 5–8 years, depending on feeding

Clutch

usually 1–5 eggs, up to two clutches a year, rarely three

Incubation

55–80 days at 29–31 °C (84–88 °F)

At 26 °C (79 °F) incubation takes about 83 days, from 29 °C (84 °F) about 57 days. Below about 31.5 °C (89 °F) mostly males hatch, above it females. Females produce eggs even without a male, and a sandy, sunny laying site helps prevent egg binding. Keep a male only with at least three females. If you don't want offspring, don't incubate the eggs.

Sources [9] [10] [1] [5]

Protection status and registration

As of October 21, 2026

• EU

  CITES Appendix II, and in the EU Annex A of the Wildlife Trade Regulation, which makes it strictly protected. Buying, selling and any commercial use are only allowed with an EU certificate for the individual animal.

  Sources [11] [12]

• Germany

  Report keeping the tortoise, and every addition and departure, in writing to the responsible authority without delay. Depending on the state, this is usually the lower nature conservation authority (Untere Naturschutzbehörde) or the city administration. Every animal is marked: from 500 g you can choose a microchip, otherwise photos of the carapace and plastron, which you repeat as long as the tortoise keeps changing. You must show proof of origin and the EU certificate on request.

  Sources [13] [14] [2]

• Austria

  Report to the authorities within two weeks that you keep reptiles. Since July 1, 2026, you need to take a training course (at least 4 × 60 minutes) before your first reptile. Buying and selling only with an EU certificate. Marking is done with photos of the carapace and plastron that you take yourself: at hatching, after six months, every year until the fifth year, and after that whenever the tortoise changes noticeably. Show proof of origin and the photos on request.

  Sources [15] [3] [16] [17]

• Switzerland

  No permit needed. You must be able to prove origin and legal acquisition with documents and hand them over when you rehome the tortoise. The Animal Protection Ordinance requires outdoor access and hibernation for all ages.

  Sources [7] [18]

This is not legal advice. Rules change, so check with the responsible authority if in doubt.

Health

No substitute for a vet. If your animal seems sick, refuses food for an unusually long time or loses weight, see a vet with experience in reptiles.

• Bone and shell damage

  Signs soft or deformed shell, pyramiding, overgrown beak

  What to do Check the diet (high in fiber, calcium) and the UVB, and see a vet.

• Kidney disease

  Signs not eating, lethargic, often after high-protein food, keeping too cool, hibernating too warm or a lack of water

  What to do See a vet (blood work) and change husbandry and diet.

• Egg binding

  Signs the female digs again and again, doesn't lay, strains or seems restless

  What to do Offer a sunny, sandy laying site. If she still doesn't lay, see a vet.

• Herpesvirus

  Signs coating in the mouth, nasal discharge, not eating; tortoises that look healthy can also spread the virus

  What to do See a vet right away and keep the tortoise separate. Have new tortoises tested with a blood sample and keep them separate for months.

• Runny nose and pneumonia

  Signs nasal discharge, bubbling, open-mouth breathing

  What to do Keep the tortoise warm and see a vet. Don't keep tortoises on the floor, where it is drafty.

• Intestinal parasites

  Signs diarrhea, weight loss; common especially in outdoor keeping

  What to do Have a fecal sample tested, ideally before hibernation.

Sources [2] [1] [4] [9]

Sources

1. Merkblatt Nr. 177: Heimtiere – Griechische LandschildkrötenTierärztliche Vereinigung für Tierschutz (TVT) · January 2017 · retrieved October 21, 2026
2. Machbarkeitsstudie zum EXOPET-Projekt exemplarisch für die Spezies Testudo hermanniKlinik für Vögel und Reptilien, Universität Leipzig, commissioned by the State of Hesse · June 30, 2022 · retrieved October 21, 2026Compares the BMEL report, the rules in Austria and Switzerland, the TVT and the recommendation of the EXOPET experts side by side.
3. 2. Tierhaltungsverordnung, § 5, § 8 und Anlage 3 (Mindestanforderungen an die Haltung von Reptilien)officialRepublic of Austria, BGBl. II Nr. 486/2004, last amended by BGBl. II Nr. 144/2026 · Version of October 20, 2026 · retrieved October 20, 2026
4. Die europäische Landschildkröte – Vorschlag für eine tiergerechte HaltungKlinik für Vögel und Reptilien, Universität Leipzig · retrieved October 21, 2026Based on the expert opinion of the EXOPET working group.
5. Europäische LandschildkrötenofficialBundesamt für Lebensmittelsicherheit und Veterinärwesen (BLV), Switzerland · retrieved October 21, 2026Information from the federal authority, not an ordinance.
6. Gutachten über Mindestanforderungen an die Haltung von ReptilienofficialBundesministerium für Ernährung und Landwirtschaft (now BMLEH), Sachverständigengruppe tierschutzgerechte Haltung von Terrarientieren · January 10, 1997 · retrieved October 20, 2026Spells out § 2 of the German Animal Welfare Act. Not a law, but the standard veterinary offices in Germany go by.
7. Tierschutzverordnung (TSchV, SR 455.1), Art. 89 und Anhang 2 (Vorbemerkungen, Tabelle 5 Reptilien)officialSwiss Confederation · As of February 1, 2026 · retrieved October 20, 2026
8. Reptilien – passende Gehege und die richtige EinrichtungSchweizer Tierschutz STS · June 2018 · retrieved October 20, 2026
9. Basic Information Sheet: Mediterranean TortoisesLafeberVet (Christal Pollock, DVM) · March 18, 2015 · retrieved October 21, 2026Veterinary fact sheet on the Testudo species.
10. Incubation Period and Sex Ratio of Hermann's Tortoise, Testudo hermanni boettgeriEendebak, B. T., Chelonian Conservation and Biology 1(3) · 1995 · retrieved October 21, 2026Incubation temperature, incubation time and sex ratio from 741 eggs.
11. Verordnung (EU) 2026/1383 zur Änderung der Anhänge der Verordnung (EG) Nr. 338/97 (CITES-Vertragsstaatenkonferenz 2025)officialEuropean Commission · June 22, 2026 · retrieved October 20, 2026
12. Verordnung (EG) Nr. 338/97 über den Schutz von Exemplaren wildlebender Tier- und Pflanzenarten durch Überwachung des HandelsofficialEuropean Union · retrieved October 20, 2026
13. Bundesartenschutzverordnung (BArtSchV), § 7, §§ 12–13 und Anlagen 5 und 6officialFederal Republic of Germany · Last amended January 21, 2013 · retrieved October 20, 2026
14. Bundesnaturschutzgesetz (BNatSchG), § 46 NachweispflichtofficialFederal Republic of Germany · retrieved October 20, 2026
15. Tierschutzgesetz (TSchG), § 13 und § 25officialRepublic of Austria · Version of October 20, 2026 · retrieved October 20, 2026
16. Artenhandelsgesetz (ArtHG), § 5 und § 6officialRepublic of Austria · Version of October 21, 2026 · retrieved October 21, 2026
17. Arten-Kennzeichnungsverordnung 2013 (ArtKV), § 3 und Anhänge I und IIofficialRepublic of Austria, BGBl. II Nr. 300/2013 · Version of October 21, 2026 · retrieved October 21, 2026
18. Bundesgesetz über den Verkehr mit Tieren und Pflanzen geschützter Arten (BGCITES, SR 453), Art. 10officialSwiss Confederation · As of September 1, 2023 · retrieved October 21, 2026

Values without a source are common experience from keeping and breeding. Every animal is different, so watch yours and adjust its care. As of October 21, 2026.