desert tortoise
1
6.0
- noun
- /ˈdɛzərt ˈtɔːrtoʊs/
- US
:
tortuga del desierto
- The conservation team monitored the desert tortoise to ensure its survival in the harsh environment.
- Mojave desert tortoise
- desert tortoise populations
- desert tortoise habitat
Examples
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For many potential threats to Mojave desert tortoise populations, effective management actions have not been identified or implemented sufficiently.
Academic text (2012) -
The observed declines in Mojave desert tortoise populations throughout the past century are believed to result from numerous, diverse threats (USFWS 1990).
Academic text (2012) -
Obstacles to the recovery of the Mojave desert tortoise.
Academic text (2012) -
Many threats to Mojave desert tortoise populations cannot be completely eliminated because of their relationship to human population growth and activities.
Academic text (2012) -
Because of its protected status, Agassiz's desert tortoise acts as an "umbrella species," extending protection to other plants and animals within its range.
Academic text (2011) -
Indeed, many of the threats to and recommended recovery actions for the Mojave desert tortoise are broadly relevant to a functioning desert ecosystem.
Academic text (2012) -
Administrative land-management designations alone, however, do little to conserve desert tortoise populations.
Academic text (2012) -
From a conservation standpoint, one of the most important species in the desert Southwest is Agassiz's desert tortoise (Gopherus agassizii; figure 1).
Academic text (2011) -
In the arid desert, the desert tortoise slowly makes its way across the dry landscape.
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Visitors to the national park were excited to spot a desert tortoise basking in the sun.
Synonyms
50
1.2
A slow land animal with a hard domed shell and thick legs that eats plants
A burrowing tortoise that lives in dry deserts of the western United States and northern Mexico
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'a tortoise that lives in the desert' is directly and compositionally derived from 'desert' (arid region) + 'tortoise' (land reptile with a shell). This simple adjective–noun naming pattern is cross-linguistically common and should be immediately understandable to a B1 learner who knows both words.
Etymology
Desert tortoise is a straight name made from two words: desert because it lives in 'dry places' and tortoise because it is a slow, shelled animal like a turtle. Picture a slow turtle with a round shell living in hot sand and hiding in 'holes' to stay cool — that image is exactly why the name refers to this animal.