Negev tortoise the local population trend is rising. The specific name, "werneri", is in honor of Israeli herpetologist Yehudah L. Werner. Negev tortoise The Negev tortoise ("Testudo werneri") is a species of tortoise in the family Testudinidae. The species is endemic to the Negev Desert in southern Israel. "T. werneri" has been considered to be a subspecies or synonym of Kleinmann's tortoise ("T. kleinmanni" ). Males of "T. werneri" may reach a straight carapace length of . Females grow to be larger, attaining a straight carapace length of (Perälä 2001). "T. werneri" was once found in the Sinai Peninsula but has gone
Negev Brigade Negev, he told Ben-Gurion that he would not be able to command the brigade, citing deteriorating health, and praised Sarig. It was commanded by Nahum "Sergei" Sarig (which is why it was also called "Sergei Brigade") and consisted of four Palmach battalions. The Negev Brigade participated in many operations in the Negev Desert, including Operation Yoav in the latter part of the war. Sarig decided to divide the Negev into two sectors, divided by the Beersheba–Gaza road (later Highway 25). Yigal Allon then named Haim Bar-Lev as the commander of the southern sector—the 8th Battalion. The Palmach memorial website records