Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I just received Gerlach's book yesterday on the giant torts. Great piece of literature! Anyways, I was wondering if anyone knew which spp or sub spp the Aldabras currently in caprivity are. Are they a hybrid? There are so many spp in the Genus Dipsochelys. I wasn't sure if breeders were keeping the lines pure or not.

Also, does anyone know anything about Reptile Addicts out of Lockport NY? They have displayed Aldabras at the last few local shows for $2000 each. Supposedly they breed them themselves at their "facility", but they were quite rude when asked questions about their care.

thanks in advance.

A.C.
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Anthony Chodan

www.gradeareptiles.com

I too would like to know about the reputed subspecies of the Aldabra tortoise.
I am a little skeptical about claims that Aldabra (or Galapagos for that matter) are bred by anyone in New York or anywhere else in the northeast. Also, anyone who isn't all too happy to provide information on their supposed captive bred animals is someone to stay far away from. Plus, if I am selling a $2000.00 tortoise you can bet that I would be providing any information a buyer might ever want to know. I do that for my $100.00 cherryheads.
Check with Ed Pirog for nice Aldabras. He will talk your ear off about them and help you be a good keeper.

Thanks
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Ed
Tortoise_Keepers-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
Trying to keep the fun in Chelonian care

For the most part anyway.

I really don't think they are being bred in New York but you never know.

for the most part.
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Ed
Tortoise_Keepers-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
Trying to keep the fun in Chelonian care

...they had no ears

.
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Ed
Tortoise_Keepers-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
Trying to keep the fun in Chelonian care

...we thought you knew that forcefeeding is bad practice

If they are breeding them in LI, NY that is an exceptional accomplishment.

As I mentioned earlier, the taxonomy of this group is highly suspect.

The animals that come from the Seychelles could be a mix based on Gerlachs book. The animals from Mauritius seem to be D. dussumieri (those are the ones I'm offering) but there are no guarantees. All the populations outside of Aldabra are mix and match. You have to realize those that are not on Aldabra have been moved to different islands as a food source for sailors way back when. Then they were reassembled to form the groups you see now.

Also, keep in mind that much of the taxonomy is based on animals that have been raised in captivity of on transplanted populations. We know all to well how diet and environment influences morphology in tortoises so I would think all bets are off when you are not dealing with natural populations.

I don't think Dipsochelys has been widely accepted. As far as I know they are still all Geochelone gigantea.

Finally, you pretty much get what you pay for.
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Ed
Tortoise_Keepers-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
Trying to keep the fun in Chelonian care

Isn't he too far removed from the other spp? I believe he won't mate with females from other spp. Is he considered a galap or Aldabra>?
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Anthony Chodan

www.gradeareptiles.com

Lonesome George is a Galapagos tortoise. Those guys have had extensive DNA work done on them which is actually fueling the taxonomy debate. It would seem that each island has it's own species. When they were collected not the greatest records were kept.

What's worse is that they are finding that tortoises from nonadjacent islands are more closely related based on DNA which brings into question the use of DNA a sole criteria for determining a species which brings us back to George.

It seems that he is the last of his race but he is not far removed from some of the other ssp... but then the ethical questions come into play.

Dr. Pritchard seems to think there is still hope for George.

You really need to pick up his book on the Galapagos Tortoise if you are really interested. It's very interesting reading.

You can find it here.
Chelonian Research Foundation - Monographs

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Ed
Tortoise_Keepers-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
Trying to keep the fun in Chelonian care

I was at a show this past weekend and saw redfoots from the above mentioned pet store.When I picked them up they seemed so light. I had read that when you pick up a tortoise you should be surprised by how much they weigh. Is this a true statement?

FOR THE MOST PART, that is very true. Some babies can be a little light as their shell is not hard yet, but subs and adults should be heavier than they appear.
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Anthony Chodan

www.gradeareptiles.com

>

Very true. I wish we knew what the spp was, but I know its hard. At this point in herpetoculture, I guess people can't really be picky with the GIANTS, as they are not produced in great enough quantity and can still demand top dollar even though their classification has many question marks. Where did the captive populations orginate? As far as I know, zoos destroy any eggs laid by their animals except for the ones that are needed (have heard of the Philly zoo destroying muhlenbergi eggs).

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Anthony Chodan

www.gradeareptiles.com

>>have heard of the Philly zoo destroying muhlenbergi eggs)
...should have ask EJ what hapen to them gallops in that SD zoo...