Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I recently came across Chersina angulata. They are the first ones that I have seen (other than photos). Does anyone here have any experience with or know much about these tortoises? Very little seems to be written about them. I assume the high humidity of SE Asia might be a death sentence for these beautiful little tortoises. Humidity is much easier to raise than to lower.

There is some good information at this link:
http://www.chelonia.org/Articles/cangulatacare.htm
And some pictures for the rest of us at this link:
http://www.chelonia.org/Chersina_gallery.htm

Your probably going to have a tough time keeping it outside through the summer wet season. When its wet or super humid outside, I suggest keeping it in an enclosed setup with limited ventilation. My setup for Golden Greeks is around 2 meters by 1 meter with 2 100W flood lights on one end and small vents on top. The lights really dry out the air. There is also a dehumidifier in the room and the tortoises have been doing well.

If you don't get a dehumidifier, you might have access to something I used when I lived in Asia. They sell dehumidifiers that consist of a small tub of moister absorbing crystals. They are used for putting in your closet to reduce the humidity so mold doesn't grow on your cloths. You could actually put one of those tubs inside a tortoise enclosure, where the tortoise couldn't reach it to keep the humidity down. Just a thought.

Good luck,

John

Chersine angulata are extremely prone to skin lesions if there is any humidity present. Additionally, they like it very warm in the day time (90-100F) with night time temperature drops into the 50's and even lower. I have been to SE Asia (Burma, Singapore, etc.) and believe that you would have a terrible time keeping that species there unless you are able to set them up in a room dedicated solely to that species. I kept them in the northeastern US where the humidity is much lower than in SE Asia and still had to fight the skin lesions. Additionally, the temperatures outdoors even in summer were not high enough for the tortoises and they had to be kept indoors 12 months a year to remain (relatively) healthy. In case you do not recognize my name, I am Bill Zovickian and I have been keeping turtles and tortoises (and many other animals) continuously since the mid 1950's. The Chersine are better off in S. Africa, believe me.

From the little information that is available on this species, it shows that they are difficult to maintain. It appears to be a species best suited for the California desert (or its native South Africa) rather than the flood plains of central Thailand!

The dehumidifiers available are not very effective (maybe -15%)and the crystals, which I used in Okinawa, are great for keeping the mold off clothes in the closet, but would not do much for a ventilated enclosure or room.

For the same reason I will not try to keep Uromastyx sp. here, I think that this species may just suffer a slow demise with the constant high temperatures and very high humidity. With its high price, it would not be a very good investment in money or time.