Texas tortoise microhabitat associations in a southern Texas coastal rangeland

This data was used assessed Texas tortoise (Gopherus berlandieri) microhabitat use and its relationship with carapace temperature during the Texas tortoise active (April–October) and inactive seasons (November–March) between January 2023–February 2024 in a thornscrub savanna in southern Texas, USA. The data collected include vegetation ground cover and overhead canopy cover data at locations of telemetered tortoises and paired random locations. Additionally, carapace temperature data (degrees Celsius) was collected using iButton temperature loggers adhered to a rear marginal scute of each tortoise. We compared microhabitat variables by location type to determine if tortoises associated with certain cover types compared to what is available. Then, we assessed the relationship between microhabitat variables at tortoise locations and carapace temperature using linear mixed models.