Reptile & Amphibian Forums

....we have assembled a nice little group of emys 3.2.4 (with 2 of the 4 being almost certainly girls) . that we will have in their new yard in a few hours (stand by for pics!). our 11.5 inch female that we have had for 7 yrs now built nests with the cypress mulch this winter,(but no eggs). something we had never seen her do, she was introduced to a 13 inch male last summer who adores her. the area we are putting them in is mostly grass with no leaf litter. what can we put out there so they can build nests? i will be stealing bags of leafs this fall, just kidding i should have enough with my trees to cover it. but in the mean time what would be good to use? i can mow up some grass clippings? straw? poplar/aspen mix shavings i use for my snake cages? thanks, also i am wondering if the poly coated wire mesh fence might cause them to pace and stress them. i guess i will see soon, its about 2500 sg ft with a somewhat rounded fence line and lots of tall grasses to burrow down into. if so i guess i can run vinyl siding along the bottom. thanks, john yocum

Hey John,

>>the area we are putting them in is mostly grass with no leaf litter. what can we put out there so they can build nests? i will be stealing bags of leafs this fall, just kidding i should have enough with my trees to cover it. but in the mean time what would be good to use? i can mow up some grass clippings? straw? poplar/aspen mix shavings i use for my snake cages?

Honestly, I would think anything and everything which is cut/fallen plant biomass. I have about 75 Live 'Sand' Oaks on our property. They are not HUGE, but drop their leaves every season. So, I have oak leaves EVERYWHERE! You could also likely use cut grass with leaves and heck, as the neighbors if you can rake their lawns! Hahahaha... No kidding. I put out probably 15 full size garbage can loads of oak leaves for them this season. I plan to use more next season for sure.

> thanks, also i am wondering if the poly coated wire mesh fence might cause them to pace and stress them. i guess i will see soon, its about 2500 sg ft with a somewhat rounded fence line and lots of tall grasses to burrow down into. if so i guess i can run vinyl siding along the bottom.

They will pace it for sure and cause problems. I'm sure of it! I have 24" x 8' PT plywood sections all around to make the pen. This way they cannot get over it and cannot see through. Makes for 'calmer' torts.

Matt

you are right,,,,,they are just walking around the edges,,,well a couple are, the 2 9.5 inchers are burrowing into the grass alot. we know from past experience that most reptiles act a bit more wild outside but we hope they get back to themselves soon. they would come right up to us with no fear indoors, its only been a few days so i am sure they will settle down, now i am wishing i made the pen smaller, with how much wood i am going to have to buy....sheesh! i really thought as big as this pen was that they may just settle in. thanks again, john

Here are her dimensions:

432mm (17 inches) 'SCL' (Straight Carapace Length)
318mm (12.5 inches) 'wide'
178mm (7 inches) 'high'

Hope that helps, John!

Matt
p.s. - I will not be able to measure her weight since I no longer have a functional scale. But, that will change soon!