Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi

I was just wandering if the Aligator snapper turtle reach a certain size to breed or to a certain age to breed .

Thanks in advance

Cheers SAM

It's a certain size. James Dobie did a study in '71 that concluded alligator snappers breed once they hit about 130 mm skull length. The accepted rule of thumb for subsequent researchers has been about 12 inches carapace length to mature breeding adulthood. This corresponds (supposedly) to about 10-15 years in the wild. Since they'll grow more depending on their diet, adult size can be reached in differing amounts of time.
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That's not just a woman; it's a way of life!
-Roland T. Flakfizer

Hi there

Thanks for the information as i have a few reaching that size on carapace length . I will try measure the skull length.
As they have no access to dry ground/sand so if they r sexually mature i will redesign the enclousure to include dry ground.

Cheers SAM

Not to insult your intelligence, but do you have males and females? I'd hate to have you redesign the enclosure unless you have a breeding pair.
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That's not just a woman; it's a way of life!
-Roland T. Flakfizer

Hi there

I bought many wif breeding in mind.As 2 are larger than the others n the tail r thicker in the 2 "males"All r bought at the same time as hatchlings the 2 outgrow the rest n from wat i know Male snapper grow larger . anyway is there any foolproof way to tell Male n Female apart.DNA testing .... like in bird

Cheers SAM

Males are larger then females. This is great if you have really old turtles, but not much help if they are growing up together, at relatively the same rates. My alligator snapper doesn't even weigh a pound, and I only recently acquired it, so I don't speak from experience. However, I am doing my graduate thesis on the species, and everything I have read indicates that the position of their cloaca speaks for their gender, once they are sexually mature. Males' cloaca are farther down their tails then females, for the purposes of mechanics during mating. Just compare the distance from their shell to their cloaca when you have them flipped over.

There's also a method called laparascopy that involves cutting into their tails to examine their internal genital structure, but I've only read about it, and wouldn't advise it unless you happen to be a veterinarian with a fully equipped operating room.
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That's not just a woman; it's a way of life!
-Roland T. Flakfizer

Hi there

When u say that size difference is only good for comparing older turtle .How old or the size be ?
As in my group the two bigger (Male)are about the same size difference of maybe 1 inch
The others (female) when compared wif the male are at least 3-5 inch SCL shorter .So i think the growth rate should be equal when everything(food,temp,enclosure,age)is the same .The only different must be the Sex.

My biggest Male is about 5 years old wif SCL almost 16 - 17 inch. Is that growth rate abnormal ???
Cheers SAM

I'm not certain. The disparity in size difference is for really old turtles, most likely wild-caught individuals. I think (emphasis on the word think) the largest female ever weighed was only 60 or 70 pounds, where the largest verified male was around 250 pounds. The best bet is the position of the cloaca. As for growth rates, I'm uncertain. The material I've read indicates a very slow growth rate over time.

In a paper I have, juveniles fed only fish put on about 298% of their body weight after one year, while those fed a combination of fish and Reptomin treated with Nekon (vitamin supplement) put on around 675% of their body weight. Obviously, captive reared and fed individuals can have a much greater intake of food then wild ones. As for your question about growth rates, the best man to ask would be John Richards (his email address can be found at www.turtleman.com, if you didn't already know). I should hope he has kept some records of captive reared growth rates.

Which is an interesting topic. My common snapper has put on 100% of it's body weight in the last two months, and is starting to look a little, well, fat. I was feeding it once or twice a day, but I've put it on a diet now. I've also noticed some of my sliders' and map turtles' shells have a tendency to curve upwards at the back. This could be due to anything; too much food or too little variation in food.
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That's not just a woman; it's a way of life!
-Roland T. Flakfizer

Hi

I have jus got bac from out of state ,Checked on the position of the cloaca .The 2 "male" s' cloaca r in really further from the shell then the rest .
Now i am more confident that i have a colony of Male n Female.
Thanks for your help.
Jus want to ask about another question Is it alrite that i keep the 2 males wif the females if they do start to breed ??

Anyway thanks again

Cheers SAM

Larger males have been observed dominating smaller ones in studies when housed with females. If they are the same size, I could potentially see them fighting. It has never been observed in alligator snappers, but common snappers bite the hell out of each other when removed from water. You may want to think about seperating the males when you are ready to breed, just to be on the safe side.
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That's not just a woman; it's a way of life!
-Roland T. Flakfizer