I hope i have done this right

[Miss_Magickal]

Hi all

I am new to the turtle game but one of my turtles has laid some eggs..........
she laid one on the 17th of december 2004 then one on the 30th of december 2004...............these have been put in an incubator that i have made myself....................

last night she laid two more pretty eggs...............these seem to look a lot nicer than the first two but I was wondering if anyone had a few pictures of eastern long neck eggs during various stages of incubation........

this is so I can compare and see if i am doing it ok..............

My incubator is a small fruit box with a heat mat in the bottom, covered with a layer of vermiculite and the eggs are in containers with damp vermiculite and they are semi buried...................is this roght?????

I think i need all the help i can get

thanks

Caz

 

[Greebo]

I'm using a new fire-wall that wont let me see your pics but everything you've said sounds right.
I don't have any experience with turtles so I can't really give any advice but I hope they all hatch for you.

 

[instar]

Craig/expansa1 had a thread here a while back showing various turt eggs and explaining proceedures, looks ok though. craig will know inc temps etc etc

 

[Teddy]

Hi Miss Magickal

I have been breeding turtles for many years but only been using an incubator for the last 3 years with very good results.

My incubator is a foam box which had been used to transport tropical fish. I use a car trouble light to heat the box. The light is controlled by a thermostat set at about 30 degrees Celsius.

The eggs are put in an ice-cream container half filled with vermiculite which has been mixed with an equal amount of water by weight. I cut a hole in the lid. I then place glad wrap over the top to seal it and then fit the lid on to hold the glad wrap in place. This allows you to observe the eggs without disturbing them.

Turtle eggs, like all reptile eggs, should not be turned in anyway after they are laid. So, you need to be very careful not to turn them when you dig them up and move them to the incubator. In my experience you really have to move the eggs as soon as the turtle has finished laying or they don?t survive. I have read that you need to move them within the first 12 hours.

As the eggs get closer to hatching you need to regularly open the container to allow air in. I do this daily. If the eggs are deprived of oxygen they can either die or have brain damage.

You do not give much detail of the egg laying but from the sound of it the turtle did not bury the eggs, most likely because it did not have a suitable place to bury the eggs. If this is the case, most likely, they were laid in the water. If this is the case, it is most unlikely that they will hatch. I have never known eggs to hatch that were laid in the water. The reason for this, I think, is because firstly, they have probably rolled over in the water and secondly, they can?t get oxygen out of the water and suffocate. However, I would still try to incubate them, because you never know. They might hatch.

At the 30 degrees my turtle eggs take approximately 65 days to hatch.

The other thing I should mention is that the temperature that a turtle egg is incubated at determines the sex of the turtle. My thermostat is not that accurate to keep the eggs at a constant temperature, so I don?t know what effect my incubator is having on the sex of the turtles.

I am attaching a picture of my incubator, a picture of what is inside my incubator, and a picture of some turtle eggs in the incubator. Inside my incubator is 2 ice-cream containers. The 1 on the right is the turtle eggs. The other 1 is snake eggs. Unfortunately the turtle eggs are shortneck not longneck. However, there is almost no difference between longneck and shortneck eggs to look at, and unless something goes wrong, the eggs do not change in appearance from the time they are laid to the time they hatch.

Hope this is helpful

Regards

Teddy

PS in your postng there is a mention of Coastal Reptile and Amphibian Group. I was a member of the CC Frog and Reptile until it folded and would be interested in info on any associations for herps on the Central Coast.

 

[Miss_Magickal]

teddy..................

When the club folded we were the newest members............and probably the ones with the biggest voices for the formation of an online group and slatey and the fellas here gave us a chance..........

would be great to get into contact to find out more about your turts

 

[Teddy]

re contact

MM it would be good to discuss turtles and other herps. You can contact me on 0407 277 210

Regards

Teddy

 

[womas4me]

RE: re contact

Teddy, good on you, you are an example to us all. Keep up the advice. Cheers, Jim

 

[beknluke]

RE: re contact

I have been informed that when you place clingwrap over the containers, it allows oxygen through, but does not allow MOISTURE to escape. Not enough oxygen to the extent where we could shove it over our faces and still breath, but a little bit everyday - therfore enough for eggs.
My lizard eggs have been incubated without the lids being removed until all of the babies were running around and ready to go in to a new tank. They are all perfectly healthy, with no physical probs or brain issues.
Just what I was told, and my own experiences
Good luck MM