Reptile & Amphibian Forums

i have a baby RES about 1.75" long and his skin is acting odd. first his shell got rea light colored then darkened then his leges did and a little membrane like stuck to them it went away now its doing it to his mouth. is he shedding or is it something i should be worried about? his whole bottom jaw and neck is doing it.

The peeling skin that you described sounds like shedding. It's a sign of growth. However warm water temp (e.g. above 80F) sometimes makes them shed excessively. I keep my tank at 75 for my 2 baby RES, and their shedding is never very excessive, even when they were rapidly growing.

It's also normal for hatchlings to change shell/skin color. Part of growing up I guess.

see i have heard that i should keep them at a higher temp. i was told by several people that 82-85 was optimal. but this is the first time i have noticed it so he must just be having a growth spurt or something? ill lower the temp a bit and see what happens. thanks for your reply.

I also heard (or rather read) that hatchlings should be kept at 80-85 degrees. My 2 RES hatchlings are in a tank w/ 81 degree water temp. I don't know which is better, to keep it below or above 80, but I do think that it can make them shed more and also less likely to bask. Hhmmm...

I keep the water temp at 75F for my hatchlings (now 2" long; used to be 1.25" and they don't seem to mind it. They are active and healthy. This cooler temp encourages them to bask as well.