I've been noticing some real changes in my turtles' shells and I wanted to know if it is normal.
As I've mentioned before, I have two baby yellow bellied sliders, which I know aren't really the breed associated with this forum, but there aren't any YBS communities out there and as I understand it one kind of slider is very close to another.
When I first got my Turtles (Mordin and Pinkman) they were light green and only slightly larger than the size of a silver dollar, this was maybe 7 weeks ago and I think they were only recently hatched when I bought them. Pinkman's shell was always darker than Mordin's, one of the chief differences between them is that the patterning on Mordin's shell made more room for the lighter colours.
(Mordin on the left, Pinkman on the right)
I moved them to a 25 gallon tank for the time being and until recently I was alternating UVA and UVB bulbs on a day today basis because I only had one lamp. Early last week their second lamp finally arrived and since then they've had both lamps trained on them during the day time. The lamps aren't on timers though, but I'm pretty regular with the timing.
The first time I noticed any real changes in their shell was when the dark lines dividing the plates of Pinkman's shell changed from a dark, almost black colour to a light almost white colour. I looked it up and these looked like every picture of growth-lines I could find, so I didn't worry. They certainly have been getting bigger, so I figured it was a healthy thing.
Last night, however, I returned home very late due to unforeseeable circumstances and as a result, their tank was lit up between 7AM and 2PM. The first thing I noticed was that Mordin, who generally basks more than Pinkman, had a much darker shell now. Dark enough to match Pinkman's in fact. I'm wondering if this is the turtle equivalent of a sunburn or a tan, or if this is far more serious? Should a turtle's shell darken at this young age?
Secondly there has always been a lighter spot on the top of Mordin's shell where the pattern sort of breaks. Before it was light green, so I didn't think it was an infection, here is how it used to look;
Now that Mordin's shell has darkened that patch hasn't - and seems very pale in comparison, almost as light as Pinkman's growth lines. Almost white. I ran my finger over it and his shell is hard, not soft. I couldn't get a picture yet, but I will tonight.
In the meantime - is there any chance this might just be odd patterning, or some kind of growth mark, or does it sound like a bacterial infection? And if it IS an infection, what kind of treatments work for that?
Thanks,
-MVB
Bill - RES
