[9] C. signatus is naturally restricted to a small area in Little Namaqualand, an arid region in the west of South Africa, where it normally lives on rocky outcrops and forages among the rocks for the tiny succulent plants it eats.

Whi[13] The average mature female speckled tortoise produces about ≤ 5 eggs per year.

As the trade in collected Chersobius species is strictly illegal and any captive specimens are systematically registered in noncommercial studbooks in South Africa and Namibia, any commercial sale of Chersobius tortoises is almost without exception strictly illegal.

[15][1][16][17] Many are taken from their natural habitat each year, and nearly all subsequently die as a result, as they do not readily adapt to typical captive diets and environmental change.

Therefore, the species can adapt well to captivity, provided that proper attention is paid to temperature, humidity, and a sufficiently varied diet.