I just got a 10" 7 lb sulcata. I was told that it could be around 3 years old unsure of the sex. It's plastron is pretty flat- the middle portion of the plastron shows no dipping but a straight ridge. The tail seems stubby.
I have another 12" that is for sure a male (11lbs) and he is constantly trying to mate the smaller one. That makes me think that it's a female? He's been chasing her around the yard for the last 3 days (since I got her). There's no fighting- he comes to 'her' and gets in front of her and then trys to mate. if indeed she is a female- i'm pretty sure she's till too small. will he stop trying to mate her? how long does that go on? they have a huge yard here in the sunny AZ and i would put her on the opposite end and she would go back to him and then start running from him!
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Sulcata 10" Male or Female? Also mating?
Replies (4)
Another picture...
Any input is appreciated.
Definitely looks like a female so far but theres not really any way to tell for sure until its larger.
It looks flat like a female, but the opening near the tail looks a bit wide, so it may be a male. Sulcatas have to be between 12 and 14 inches long before you can successfully tell male from female most of the time. The one you know is a male will probably mate a few times if it was raised alone, or hasn't seen a female in a while. Twelve inches is too small for the male or female to be at sexual maturity. My big ten year old male is between 40 and 50 pounds, and when I brought him home last year, I had to keep the 12 inch female penned up because the male was just so aggressive to her, and would flip her constantly, but now they share a dog house at night together, with almost no problems. It could be territorial, mine have two acres to roam, and I'd put them at opposite ends of the yard, and the male would make a beeline straight toward her, and flip her.
I pretty much agree with the others and will add that if your male is trying to "mate" with the new one it does not mean it is a female. Sometimes males will do it to the males as well just to show dominance. Sometimes my backyard will look like a prison cell.
