Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have a 3 yr old res. The last couple days I've noticed "Turbo" shedding some of his shell. They are thin, semi-transparent pieces, but are pretty big. About the size of each section of the shell. Are these called scutes? Is this normal. I've had Turbo since he was a hatchling. Never noticed this before. I went to a pet store and got a new UVB tube and an incandescent heat lamp. He's about 3.5 inches long in a 30 gallon tank. Gonna need to upgrade soon. Water temp about 80 and air temp at the basking site is about 85-87. Use an aquatech power filter. The big one for a 60 gallon tank. Water is clean. Got rid of the gravel. Has a 12 in by 11 in, easily accessible basking ramp. He uses it frequently. Also started using VitaShell and one of those turtle shaped sulpha blocks. From what I've read over the last couple days, I think this shedding is normal. Just wanted some other opinions. Also trying to find a good care sheet page online. Thanks for the help.

Yes, it is normal. And yes, they are called scutes.