Pancake Tortoises have a fairly flat shell structure (hence the name). They like to go in rock crevices and enjoy the radiating heat. This buddy here seems to go "Awww yeah. Waffle iron mode, babyyy."
Pancake Tortoises have a fairly flat shell structure (hence the name). They like to go in rock crevices and enjoy the radiating heat. This buddy here seems to go "Awww yeah. Waffle iron mode, babyyy."
Bonus speculative factoids:
- A pancake tortoise hatchling is called a Morsel
- A pancake tortoise adult is called a Flapjack
- A pancake tortoise group is called a Stack
I have no way of verifying this, of course. English language doesn't have a governing body, after all.
The pancake tortoise is a fast and agile climber, and is rarely found far from its rocky home so that, if disturbed, it can make a dash for the nearest rock crevice.[6] Since this tortoise could easily be torn apart by predators, it must rely on its speed and flexibility to escape from dangerous situations, rather than withdrawing into its shell.[10] The flexibility of its shell allows the pancake tortoise to crawl into narrow rock crevices to avoid potential predators,[6] thus exploiting an environment that no other tortoise is capable of using.[11]
Don't see anything about heat.
I admit, I was speculating on the headline. However!
The pictured specimen is a captive one. Not really one subject to avoiding predators or being disturbed.
The ectotherms do a lot of strange things for thermoregulation.
They also can expand their bodies to lock themselves in place, in case a predator with a long beak wants to try and yank them out
I name him Panini.
He is both the big spoon and the little spoon