Ancient Life in Kansas Rocks, part 23 of 27
Testudo, a land tortoise, is familiar to all because it has living representatives today. This specimen, shown at slightly less than one-sixth actual size) comes from the Pliocene of western Kansas. Testudo is known to be restricted to areas where temperatures remain above freezing all year; therefore it is believed that this fossil indicates that Kansas was warm all year long during the time the animal lived here. (Ogallala Formation, Pliocene)
Kansas Geological Survey
Placed online Feb. 1997
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