Harmless · CITES Appendix I · Native to India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka

Indian star tortoise

Geochelone elegans

Named for the star pattern on each scute
Data updated November 2026

Indian star tortoise on dry ground, showing yellow lines radiating from each scute of a black domed shell
Fig. 1 — Adult showing the yellow star pattern on each scute.
Close view of an Indian star tortoise shell with raised, pyramid-shaped scutes
Fig. 2 — Many star tortoises have bumpy, pyramid-shaped scutes.

At a glance

A medium-sized tortoise of the dry scrublands of India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka, known for the bold yellow stars on its black shell. That beauty has made it one of the most smuggled tortoises in the world, and since 2019 commercial international trade has been banned under CITES Appendix I.

01

Identification

The shell is broad, rounded and high-domed. It is near-black with bright yellow lines radiating from the center of each scute, forming a star. The underside carries the same radiating pattern, which helps separate it from similar tortoises. Many individuals have raised, pyramid-shaped scutes, but the shell edge stays smooth. The head has yellow markings on dark gray to black, or is mostly yellowish to pale brown.

  1. 01Star-patterned scutes. Yellow rays spread out from a yellow center on each black scute.
  2. 02Patterned underside. The lower shell has radiating dark-and-yellow lines too.
  3. 03High, often bumpy dome. Scutes are often raised into pyramids, while the rim of the shell is smooth.

Commonly confused with

The Burmese star tortoise of Myanmar and the radiated tortoise of Madagascar also have star-like shells, but neither lives in the Indian star tortoise’s range.

02

Size

03 in6 in9 in12 in Adult female shell · about 10 in (25 cm)

Females are clearly bigger than males. Adult males reach up to about 26 cm (10 in) in shell length and females up to about 32 cm (12.5 in), but many adults are smaller: one zoo puts males at about 6 inches and females at about 10 inches. Adults weigh roughly 2 to 15 pounds. Hatchlings are only 32–40 mm (about 1.5 in) long, and most animals seized from smugglers are young ones no more than about 10 cm (4 in) long.

03

Range & habitat

Dry scrubland with grass tufts and thorny bushes in southern India
Fig. 3 — Open, dry scrubland is the star tortoise’s main habitat.

Indian star tortoises live in three separate areas: northwestern India (Gujarat and Rajasthan) and neighboring southeastern Sindh in Pakistan; southern and eastern India, including Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh and Odisha; and the lowlands of Sri Lanka up to about 270 m (890 ft). They favor open, dry scrubland, along with scrub forest, grassland, dry savanna and coastal scrub in arid and semi-arid country. They can also live around farm fields, hedgerows and plantations, as long as they are not collected or killed there.

04

Diet & predators

Star tortoises are plant-eaters. In the wild they eat grasses and other vegetation, fallen fruit and flowers, and occasionally snails. By eating fruit and passing the seeds, they help spread plants. Our sources do not name their natural predators, so the list below shows the main threats instead.

Feeds on

  • Grasses
  • Leafy vegetation
  • Fallen fruit and flowers
  • Snails (occasionally)

Main threats

  • Illegal collection for the international pet trade
  • Habitat loss to orchards and cash crops
  • Local hunting for food
  • Road traffic, farm machinery and discarded fishing nets
Ripe fallen fruit lying on dry ground
Food — fallen fruit.
Thorny scrub and grass tufts in dry country
Habitat — dry scrubland.

05

Behavior & seasons

Star tortoises are most active in the monsoon season, which is also when most are collected from the wild. The rest of the year they move and feed mainly in the early morning and late afternoon and hide under bushes or tufts of grass in the heat of the day. The star pattern breaks up the tortoise’s outline in grass. They like to soak in shallow water.

Males compete for females by trying to flip each other onto their backs.

06

Reproduction

Star tortoises breed slowly. Mating takes place in the rainy season, roughly mid-June to mid-October. While digging her nest, the female wets the soil with urine to soften it. Each clutch has about 2 to 10 eggs, often 3 to 6, and females usually lay two or three clutches a year, occasionally four. Incubation lasts about 47 to 147 days. Young tortoises reach maturity at about 6 to 7 years.

07

Conservation

The Indian star tortoise is assessed as Vulnerable, and its numbers are falling. Illegal collection for the international pet trade is the biggest threat. At least 34,080 live animals were seized in 118 enforcement actions worldwide from 2000 to 2015, nearly two-thirds of them in India, and in Malaysia alone more than 3,600 have been seized since 2011. Habitat loss, local hunting and road deaths add to the pressure.

The species had been on CITES Appendix II since 1975. In August 2019 it was moved to Appendix I, which bans commercial international trade. It is also protected by national law in India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka, and none of the three countries has allowed legal export of live wild animals since 1999.

08

In captivity

Star tortoises have long been kept as pets, but they are now tightly controlled. Commercial international trade has been banned under CITES since 2019, and capturing or selling wild animals is illegal in their home countries. The species does not breed easily in captivity. Anyone considering one should buy only documented captive-bred animals and check national and local rules first; they are long-lived, with lifespans of 25 to 80 years.

See a reptile vet if your tortoise stops eating, has runny eyes or nose, breathes with its mouth open, or has a soft or damaged shell. More pet care guides

Keep reading

Sources

Data updated November 2026 · How we build these pages