Flaviemys purvisi
Very Well-Known Member
Hi all, its a rare thing to catch captive ELN's in the act, they're pretty secretive and their courtship behaviour is nowhere near as elaborate as is with short-necked species. Also, the way ELN's actually mate is very different, due to the male's extremely short tail, his shell must be positioned perpendicular to hers, almost at right angles to achieve a successful mating. The male uses his long neck in the female's vertebral groove on her carapace as a guide to achieve perfect alignment, then he locks his hind feet into her hind limb pockets and twists them vertically to maintain his position whilst using his front feet/claws like a tree climber's spikes to grapple with her carapace and hold on while she's swimming. It's rarely observed, I've seen the entire act only once. This particular female has already laid two clutches this season, the first on 9/11/18 and the second on 2/01/19. I came home today to see her sporting fresh evidence of another successful mating, grappling marks on her carapace either side of her vertebral groove from the male's sharp claws. Clutch number 3 is not far away now. She is for her size, as heavy as a besser block. Happy days.
