Home › Forums › Diamondback Terrapins › nesting soem questions
- This topic has 1 reply, 1 voice, and was last updated 19 years, 9 months ago by
Stephen Chew.
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May 5, 2005 at 2:10 pm #20994
bloomindaedalus
Hi folks, For those who have had consistent breeding usccess with natural nesting of DBT Does sand color or the amount of cover seem to make a difference in famle choice? In NA wood turtles and reeevs turtles, (both easily bred in captivity) I have seen some some factors which seem to influence female nest site choicee. Does this seem to be the case in DBT? The literature indicates a variety of factors none seem particualry important (save distance from water) in determining nesting sites for wild terrapins. Do any of you specifically use white sand or a more brown sand? Do you add lots, little, or none, of the following to the sand mixes (peat, topsoil, gravel)? Do you find the preferentially nest in areas that have lots of cover (shrubs, grasses, articfical cover such as wood boards or fence overhangs)? Also, with some species, it seems to take WC females several years to nest naturally. Does this seem to be the case with DBTS? (dropping eggs in the water, egg-binding, or nesting partially for the first few years?) Any/all info would be greatly appreciated. -rob
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May 5, 2005 at 9:18 pm #20996
Stephen Chew
Rob, I can’t really give definitive answers to your questions but I can make some comments based on my observations: 1) Sand color can make a difference in wild-caught females. A female from the wild that is used to nesting in light colored sand (Gulf specimens) will be reluctant to nest in darker sand/dirt. I have seen females attempt to nest on a sidewalk over dirt because of the color similarity to sand. 2) Amount of cover does not appear to make much of a difference since all my breeders nest in the open. 3) Would not recommend adding additional media like peat, topsoil or gravel to nesting media though peat is sometimes added to incubation media. 4) Wild-caught females will not nest for several years in captivity. In fact, they may not nest for the first initial few years, nest for a few years following, and then cease producing altogether. -Chun — In diamondbackterrapins@yahoogroups.com, “bloomindaedalus”
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