Reptile & Amphibian Forums

does anyone know how to tell if a female dbt is gravid (other than if they are clawing at the wall of their tank? and also is there a good way to get her to lay the eggs b/c there isn't much land in the enclosure, so i assume it'll have to take place in a wading pool or tub. thanks. ed

You can palpate a turtle to check for eggs. Gently hold her on her side. Place a finger in the pocket just anterior to her rear leg on the side facing down. This pocket is between her leg and the bridge between the carapace and plastron. If the eggs are mature enough, you can usually feel them. If she's struggling a lot, what you feel may actually be a bone, but it is smaller and will move around much more.

If you want her to lay, you're going to have to provide her with both a swimming area and a decent sized land area. The smallest I'd go is 1' squared on the land. You need to let her choose when she's going to lay, that's why I recommend the swimming area. She needs to feel pretty comfortable. I say this, but I've known guys who can read their females behavior. They'll just place them in a bucket of dirt with a heatlamp. The female will almost immediately start laying. I don't think this is typical. Make sure there is a good warm spot using a heat lamp on the land, and hopefully she'll go to it. Also, if she does lay in the water, incubate them anyway. Some, or all, may still be viable.
Good luck.

so they'll want warm and dark to lay, right?

They'll choose the right spot to incubate their eggs. Indoors, this is usually a plot of dirt directly under a heat lamp. It'll be a bright, warm spot. But, they often lay their eggs during low-light hours. So, the turtle may not lay until you turn the light off at night. What kind of turtle again? Diamondback terrapin? I think that, in the wild, they will lay their eggs both night and day. I used to see females traveling to nesting sites early in the day.

Kensopher is right in saying that they will lay both day and night, as long as they are provided a good laying area, so that she doesn't drop the eggs in water. If she does, try to retrieve them within 10 minutes of being dropped in water if possible. If you do palpate your female and she is full term check on her frequently on days/nights when there is a drop in barometric pressure. This often, but not always, will signal terps to nest. Diamondbacks will dig a fairly deep nest, so give a nesting area of at least 6 inches deep, preferably more, and make sure she is absolutely finished filling in the nest and has returned to the water after finishing before retrieving the eggs for incubation, so as not to place undue stress on her. As for an incubating medium, vermiculite works very well because it holds moisture yet does not promote fungal growth as sand will. Remember to keep terp eggs at about 85-90 % humitity but to "burp" or let brief air enter the incubating eggs every few days. This brings in new oxygen as well as releases carbon dioxide. I have found that to produce females, a constant 86 degrees fahrenheit has worked very well, without causing scute abnormalities. You can obtain a mixed clutch by incubating at a couple degrees lower than this, and males at a couple degrees lower than that, due to DBT's being temp. sex-dependent. Hope this helps. And good luck!