Other Turtle Discussion :: mating

[mollylawson]

Hi...i have two res and today i saw something i have never seen before, possibly mating? both of them fluttered their hands infront of each others face. If it's not mating, what could it be, aggression? I am worried I might have turtle babies, YIKES!!!

[MiLhOuSe]

Both of them? You can tell by the length of their claws and tails. Males tend to have much longer claws and thicker tails. If they're both males, then this is a pretty likely sight that they are showing terriorial agression towards each other. If they actually start bitting or chasing eachother around, then I'd be looking to seperate them. Of course this means a seperate filter, UVB/UVA lamp and basking area. But of course if one of them is a FEMALE, then yes, the fluttering of claws is a mating sign. Of course your female won''t get eggs immediately, but there's a possibility. Also, how old is your turtle(if you have a suspicion that one of them is a female)? If she's not that old, then the eggs won't be fertile. And another thing--you're going to want to create a nesting area for your female(if one of them is a female) just loosely pack on some soft, moist soil and sand.

[mollylawson]

I have no idea on the ages of these two res. I myself have had them a year. One i found in a park the other i bought. The bigger one is about 7 or 8 inches long (top shell to bottom) and she has short claws stubble tale. The smaller one is 5 inches or so long and has long claws, fat longer tail (he i'm guessing) is the one who is fluttering his hands.

The smaller one also digs in the rocks alot so i though she was the female, but i guess not.

how do i get nesting area ready? do i build it in the water? how long does it take for the hatching to arrive? Gosh, i'm so not ready for all of this!!

thanks for all of your help BTW.

[sonyj]

Yes, it sounds like you have one of each there. You will need a nesting site for your female because she will lay eggs even without a male around. Since you do have a male the eggs may or may not be fertile. A female RES needs a nesting area accessible to them when they reach maturity. Here's a good link that tells about nesting sites: http://www.tortoisetrust.org/articles/Nestsites.htm