General Care Discussion :: Female RES layed eggs without the help of a Mate??

[pbarry30]

Hi all,
my wife and I just got back from a 5 day vacation today to find that our only turtle had layed eggs (approx 4 or 5) in her tank. What is weird is that she does not have a mate!!
The only thing out of the ordinary was that we messed up on the schedule with our neighbour to take care of our turtle so she went maybe 2 days or so without food!

Any ideas?

Pat

[marisa]

Mature females lay eggs without mating. She does need a nesting area, though, in case she has more to lay. The link most often given, which has some good info, is http://www.tortoisetrust.org/articles/Nestsites.htm

[pbarry30]

Thanks Marisa - that is a relief to know. Since I assume that the eggs are unfertalized (or else I am very confused ), can I just remove the eggs once layed?

Thanks again
Pat

[ellman605]

yup, you can just chuck em, i say flush them down the toilet

[marisa]

Yes, remove them. You could check to see if she still has any in her by gently feeling the area in front of the hind legs with a finger. They'll feel like grapes.

I'd still make an easily accessible nesting area for her, though, just in case. If you haven't yet, take a look at that link...