Each pen is surrounded by a short black silt fencing, which isn’t meant to keep predators out, but to keep gopher tortoises in. “We need for them to realize this is their home now,” Derek explained.

Over the last century, the reptile’s population in the Peach state has declined by 80%. A dwindling habitat means fewer pine ...

The gopher tortoise dig burrows that end up not only acting as a home for themselves, but as a refuge for hundreds of other species in Florida.