Meet Sherman, the 55-pound sulcata tortoise who’s treating Bay Area public transit like his personal stage — and somehow making it look cool.
The 11-year-old African spurred tortoise has become an unlikely local celebrity after hopping (well, slowly walking) onto BART trains around San Francisco, stopping commuters in their tracks as they drop everything for selfies. His TikTok (@shermanator209) has already cleared 10,000 followers, with Instagram sitting pretty at over 8,000, thanks to videos of the shelled star casually rolling through train cars, airport terminals, Costco aisles and even a McDonald’s drive-thru.
Owner Wilson Tsai, who lives in Modesto with his wife and two kids, adopted Sherman in 2025 from Cali FID Parrot & Exotics Rescue Sanctuary. The family showed up just to look around. They left with a new family member. “We fell in love with him because he was completely fearless,” Tsai has said. While other tortoises retreated into their shells, Sherman walked right up, locked eyes, and let them pet him. Tsai named him after the WWII Sherman tank — a solid choice for a determined little (okay, not-so-little) explorer.
That roaming instinct kicked in fast. Sherman started digging under fences and slipping out open gates, once making it half a mile down the road toward a park before neighbors flagged him. Instead of doubling down on containment, Tsai leaned into it. He started packing Sherman into a large plastic storage bin and taking him out into the world. Vintage Faire Mall. Car dealerships. SFO. And eventually, BART.
“Everywhere he goes, he gets a reaction,” Tsai explained. “People drop whatever they’re doing, and then they just stare at him nonstop. They take selfies with him; it’s like their entire world just stops when he’s around.”
Sherman walks about five miles on a good day and remains unfazed by crowds. At home he’s a softie who pads up to the sliding door for head scratches. Out in public he just keeps that same steady energy, turning ordinary errands into impromptu meet-and-greets. He’s already done the local TV circuit (KTVU, KRON4) and even shared a park moment with a much smaller tortoise named Jolene.
Sulcatas can live well into their 70s or beyond and keep growing — Sherman could eventually hit 100-150 pounds. Tsai has already set up a will and trust so the tortoise is covered for the long haul. “I know he will outlive me,” he said.
In a city full of main characters, Sherman is somehow the one everyone wants to stop and stare at. No drama, no noise, just pure, unhurried tortoise charisma rolling through the Bay Area one BART ride at a time.
