Posted: Sat Dec 11, 2010 12:43 pm Re: in preparation for eggs
I have no idea off the top of my head how long a female's gestation period is, but if she needs to lay her eggs, she'll start having "tantrums". She'll try to escape the tank on a frequent basis, and sometimes dig at the basking dock with her back feet.
When a female is gravid, you have two options: In warm weather, you can take her outdoors to a place with exposed dirt and cover, like a bush or small plant, where she will feel safe enough to lay the eggs. The other option is to make a nesting box. Females can be very picky about nesting boxes, and most people use potting soil, sand, cyprus mulch, snake bedding, or a combination of those things. The box should be covered with a towel or partially with a lid, so she has privacy. Turtles go into a kind of "trance" when they are laying eggs, and because of this, it makes them vulnerable to predators, and leaves the eggs vulnerable too. This plays a major part in their picky behaviors.
Phryne - Japanese bobtail, 11 y.o.
Hurricane - RES, approx. 19 y.o., 7.00in. long
Typhoon - RES hybrid, approx. 19 y.o., 8 in. long
Sadie - RES, approx. 30+ y.o., 11.5in. long
Sophie - Colombian red tail boa, 15 y.o., 5 ft. long
