Reptile & Amphibian Forums

how long to hatch cribo eggs?

.......Thanxx alot........never bred them.......guy from the pet shop dropped them off and I know not how long they will take.......they are his and hopefully there is at least a pair so another friend can buy them .......1 dud......3 good and 3 died not long after laying.......

..........Thanxx...........
-----
JYReptiles

Scales-N-Tails Reptiles ltd........Pa

Mine took 103 days at temps between 76-78.....I kept them at lower temps because I heard that they are relatively sensitive to higher temps and will kink easily...good luck.

You can expect anywhere from 80-120 days, give or take a few days, before the eggs will begin pipping. Temperature plays a key role in incubation period, as higher incubation temperatures result in shorter incubation periods, though such are often associated with spinal and tail anomalies and high embryonic mortality rates.
There are actually two camps regarding the cause of spinal and tail anomalies, one maintaining such is incubation temperature related and the other maintaining the cause is genetic, but there is really little empirical evidence to support either claim.
Personally, I try to maintain incubation temperatures of 73* - 75* F, as embryonic development requires a great deal of energy resulting in an increase of the core temperature within the egg, which can be 2*-3* F higher than the ambient temperature within the incubator. Cooler incubation temperatures result in longer incubation periods, but significantly larger babies, a good trade off in my opinion…

Best of luck to you,

Jeff
-----
Jeff Snodgres
University of Arkansas
snodgresjeffreys@uams.edu
501.603.1947

Regarding incubation temps, In wild indigo's, do they lay their eggs exclusively in Gopher Tortoise burrows. Or do they lay their eggs in a variety of nest sites, brush piles, old stumps, rotting logs, compost piles etc. It would seem that if they did lay in tortoise burrows that the lower incubation temps would be the way to go. But if the eggs were layed in a compost pile, then there might be much higher incubating temps. I am sure that there has been some field research about where Indigo's prefer to lay their eggs. just some thought's.

Jack