Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hello,
I woke up this morning and one of my spotted turtles have hatched and is out of the egg, another egg is cracked and the last has nothing at this point.

The hatched turtle burrowed into the vermiculite a little and I am wondering actually what to do with them. Is it ok for them to be in the vermiculite? Should I move them? I have not had any turtles before so any help would be appreciated. Or if anyone has a suggestion where I could get more information I would appreciate that also.

Thank you.

Hello,

you can leave the hatchlings in the vermiculite. They will burrow themselves until their yolk-sack is absorbed. This will take a few days. When the hatchlings return to the surface you can put them in shallow water 3-4 cm and they will start to eat.

Thank you for your help. They are now out of the vermiculite but haven't eaten and show no interest. It has now been 6-7 days since they were born. When should they be eating? Do you have any suggestions for food to start with. Thank you.

Hello again,

they will start to feed when the yolk-sack is absorbed. Best feeding is to give them live mosquito larvae or daphnia or other water insects.