African Spurred Tortoises Drive Vegetation Recovery in the Sahara

African Spurred Tortoises Drive Vegetation Recovery in the Sahara
African spurred tortoise. Image via Wikimedia Commons (Open Source)

Sometimes, the most effective climate solutions are the most low-tech. In 2021, researchers released 500 African spurred tortoises into a degraded stretch of the Sahara. Five years on, satellite views show visible green vegetation patches resulting from the tortoises’ deep burrows that broke through the hardened crust cycle, allowing rainwater to penetrate and dormant seeds to germinate.

Posted: May 29, 2026