Female Gopherus polyphemus in N Florida mature at 10-15 years of age and 220-230 mm plastron length (approximately 1700 to 1950 g). Vitellogenesis begins in September and continues until the following nesting season. Mating in the field has been observed only in April and May, but captive mating is known from March to November. Ovulation and oviposition occur from late April through mid-July, most ovulation occurring during May and most nesting from mid-May to mid-June. A single clutch is laid annually. Hatching occurs from mid-August through September. Hatch- lings average 48 mm plastron length. Eggs average 43 mm in maximum diam and 41 g in weight. Egg size is not cor- related with female size or clutch size. Clutch size was weakly correlated with body size. Clutch size in' N Florida ranges from one to nine, with a mode of five and a mean of 5.2. Preliminary data from S Florida tortoises suggest that their reproductive biology may differ from that of N Florida populations.
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John B. Iverson (1980) studied this question.