Love is in the Air: Leopard Tortoise, the Relentless Pursuer

Leopard tortoise is known to be a loner, at least until mating season starts. Like many of their friends from the animal kingdom, male tortoises will engage in combats with their competitors, doing a lot of ramming, butting, and occasionally turning the opponent on their backs (which, as you can imagine, could present a bit of a problem for the one with feet in the air). When they pick the lady to mate with, there’s no beating around the bush. Guys will opt for a direct approach and simply run after the girl (so to speak) for quite some distance, finally butting her until she says yes. Once the lady has accepted their advances, noisy action takes place, accompanied by the male’s groans, grunts and wheezes. Relentlessly trailing a female might be considered stalking in the human world, but seems to work well enough for the leopard tortoise.