"Le Village Des Tortues".
 

Just back from France where we went to "Le Village Des Tortues".


http://www.tortoise4life.com/apps/ph...toid=176482927

Hi, where in France is it, I'm planning a trip to France later in the year and am interested to visit this place x

Love you're web site, really like your enclosures,

This is the HQ of SOPTOM, in Gonfaron in France. It's location is near Nice and Toulon in the South of France.
Great place to visit, and of course does some great work with Chelonia.

just printed off the map, will definately go here, looks wonderful x

Just had a look at the le village des tortue site, it looks wonderful, I will certainly put that on my list of places I want to go to.

Testudo hermanni (Gmelin 1789) – Hermann’s Tortoise
Albert bertolero1,2, MArc cheylAn3, AdriAn hAiley4, bArbArA livoreil5,6, And ronAld e. WilleMsen7
The attached reference is an excellent paper on Hermann's Tortoise.
One of the authors, Barbara Livoreil, was a former scientific officer at SOPTOM.
During her time there she led field studies of the native Hermann's Tortoise and has some fantastic knowledge on this subject.
For anyone visiting that part of southern France the Tortoise Village is a great experience.:-)

I've been as well and enjoyed it. There are a lot of hermanni hermanni there for the captive breeding programme and they also have a variety of other tortoises to make it more of attraction for visitors.

The area around Gonfaron known as the Massif des Maures is the last place in mainland France where the hermanni hermanni still exist. It's a vulnerable population and the area is under development threat. But it is lovely to get out and explore with the possibility of a sighting of this species in one of its' few remaining homes.

You get a lot of parties of French school children at Gonfaron and it does great educational work. Its even possible to go there and be a volunteer for a period of time. Just look the other way when the keepers are chucking cabbage and carrots into the enclosures!

I also have been several times, as my daughter lives close to it.
Over the years they have made some great improvements. Well worth a visit if you are there. Not in mid Summer as all the tortoises are hiding:0)

There is also a tortoise valley, between Spain and France, this also is worth a visit too.
The only one I have not got to yet, is the tortoise island off the med coast.

I would love to visit and will do perhaps later in the year :) looks a great place :)