My Cousin: Hermann's Tortoise

The Hermann's Tortoise rugged lifestyle and small adult size have made them one of the most popular reptile pets in the United States. These tortoises originate in the grasslands and various terrain surrounding the Mediterranean Ocean, and thrive in similar dry and moderate conditions. These tortoises will cheerfully excavate their own burrow if a suitable hide is not provided for them and will eat a variety of grasses and leafy vegetables you can plant outside. These tortoises are exceptionally hardy, and will thrive for many decades with good care.

Female Hermann's tortoises are typically larger than males once mature. However, even the largest female specimens rarely exceed 8 inches in length, making them easy to accommodate, regardless of gender. Nobody knows for certain how long a captive-born Hermann's tortoise can live. However, based on the longevity of animals acquired as adults, and that of similar species, life spans exceeding 50 years can be expected.

Tortoises are active animals, and should be provided with as much space as possible. Even when provided with a spacious enclosure, the use of an outdoor pen is recommended during the warmer months. These pens should be secure to prevent escapes. Tortoises housed outdoors, even if for only a few hours a day, will benefit greatly from the fresh air, natural sunlight, and opportunity to graze.

Hermann's Tortoises are primarily herbivores in the wild, and a similar diet should be provided in captivity. The bulk of their diet should consist of a variety of dark, leafy, greens. Romaine lettuce, collard greens, carrot tops, kale, mustard greens, and beet greens are all excellent choices.

In addition to these staples, other veggies such as carrots, squash, and bell peppers can be offered to add variety. Fruits such as figs, apple, bananas, and strawberries can be fed occasionally as treats, but these foods should make up no more than 10% of the animals diet.

Henrí: Cat Literature

Build It... and They Might Come

BFFs Part II

Good Morning, How Can I Help You?

What To Do?

Breakfast

My Cousin: Yellow-Blotched Map Turtle

The Yellow-Blotched Map Turtle, or yellow-blotched sawback, is a species of turtle in the Emydidae family. It is part of the narrow-headed group of map turtles. It is endemic to the southern United States and is limited to the Pascagoula River of Mississippi and most of its tributaries.

Yellow-blotched map turtles are medium to small-sized turtles, with males ranging from 3.5 to 4.5 inches in carapace length as adults. Adult females are larger, about 5 to 7.5 inches in carapace length. The yellow-blotched map turtle has the highest central keel of all map turtles.

Yellow-blotched map turtles feed mostly on insects, but are opportunistic feeders and also consume crustaceans and fish they also eat some fresh greens.

This species is listed as Threatened under the US Endangered Species Act due to a recent decline. This can be attributed to a low reproductive frequency as compared with most other map turtles. A high level of nest mortality due to fish crow predation and river flooding are also attributed to endangerment.

Feeding Time

For the big boys...

Magical Green Hatchling

Ready. Steady. Go!

(what a handsome devil!)

Too Cute!

Mrs. T Gets a New Set of Wheels

Coming Out Party!

My Cousin: The Ringed Map Turtle

The Ringed Map Turtle is found in the Pearl River and its tributaries in Mississippi and Louisiana.  The Pearl River is a large river that can have very swift currents when the water is high.

This is a small to medium size turtle. Males are about 3.5 to 4.5 inches as adults and females are about 5 to 7.5 inches long.  This turtle is part of the narrow head group of map turtles and therefore is mostly an insect eater, but they are also opportunistic so crustaceans and fish could also be eaten.  It has the typical map turtle central keel that is exaggerated as a hatchling and slowly wears down with age, especially old females. However, of all the map turtle species, this group (the sawback group) has the highest central keel. It also has a small plastral pattern that consists of a few horizontal lines.

Like the other sawbacks, the Ringed Map inhabits a sandy, mud bottomed river.  It is associated with brush piles (trees that have died and fell into the river). It spends much of the day basking on these fallen trees and quickly jumps into the water when approached. They seek refuge on the bottom of the river and in between the branches of the falling trees.


This species is endangered in the state of Mississippi, and federally threatened

Meet Lumpy

No Hurry

We All Need Someone.... To Lean On? Or Flip Me Over?

Longtime Companions

Both a gal and her pet all grown up!

The Dining Annoyance

Happy Mother's Day

If you mother is still alive, go have a walk with her today.

My mama has a long road to haul beginning today!
Good luck out there, Mama!

My Cousin: The Green Sea Turtle

The Green Sea Turtle is one of the two species of sea turtles usually seen in the El Nido province of the Phillipines (the hawksbill sea turtle is the other). It gets its name from the green color of its body fat – the body fat is green because it feeds on seagrass and seaweed as an adult. The green sea turtle is the only herbivorous sea turtle in adulthood. When diving, a green sea turtle can stay underwater for as long as 5 hours because its heart beats only once every nine minutes.

Adult green sea turtles can weigh between 135-160 kg and measure 1 meter long along the carapace (the top shell). If you spot a sea turtle while snorkeling or diving, you can tell it’s a green sea turtle based on it’s carapace: it’s smooth, oval-shaped, and brown or yellow-greenish in color. If you’re close enough to take a look at the head, a green sea turtle has a pair of prefrontal scales (scales on the top of the head before the eyes).

Female green sea turtles return to the beach where they hatched to lay their own eggs. They mature at 20-50 years old and return to their natal beaches every 2-4 years to lay their eggs. The eggs hatch after 60 days, with the hatchlings heading out to the open ocean where they hide and feed in floating seaweeds for several years. Once they reach a certain age or size range, they move to the coastal areas and start feeding on seagrass and seaweed. Because of their diet, green sea turtles generally stay in shallow, sheltered areas in reefs, bays, and inlets. Green sea turtles are distributed worldwide in tropical and subtropical coastal waters (between 30° North and 30° South).

Ow, Snap!

Hop on Pop

No Papparazzi, Please

(IE browsers don't seem to display this paparazzi-attacking gif)

My Cousin: The Marginated Tortoise

The Marginated Tortoise is a unique looking tortoise because of its extremely flared marginal scutes from which it gets its name. The males’ marginal scutes are usually much more flared than on the female, appearing as a "brim" of sorts.

Wild caught specimens of this tortoise used to be a commonly imported tortoise but is now not imported at all as wild caught tortoises because it is protected throughout its range. Because of successful breeding in captivity it is now becoming more commonly available as captive born tortoises.

The Marginated Tortoise grows from 8 to 12 lbs and can live more than 20 years. They are found in the hilly and mountainous areas of the Southern Balkan Peninsula and Greece.

Marginated tortoises are very cold tolerant and should be maintained at a temperature range of 75 to 90 degrees Fahrenheit at the basking site. If temperatures fall below this they will be inclined to hibernate which they do in the wild when the seasons dictate it.

These tortoises are opportunistic feeders in that they will take the usual dark leafy greens, weeds and some grasses. They are not known to be very active grazers. Marginateds are also known to consume insects, snails and carrion. In captivity they can be fed dark leafy greens, fibrous fruits such as pears and apples in addition to various berries. The main idea is to feed as varied as possible. Clean fresh water in a water dish should be provided at all times.

One important note on breeding is that the marginated tortoise is one of the most aggressive tortoises when it comes to breeding. Aggressive ramming towards the female can be so severe that female marginateds have been killed in the process.

Click here to read about "Septimus" - a Marginated Tortoise that had one leg replaced with a wheel after being gnawed by rats and is still going strong. 

"Septimus"

Meet "Big Man"

Because I'm Happy

Look, It's a Girtle!

Hitching a Ride - Pygmy Goat Style!

Hitching a Ride - Bird Style!

Hitching a Ride - Monkey Style!

Hitching a Ride - Wombat Style!

Hitching a Ride - Pug-at-Sea Style!

Hitching a Ride - Key West Style!

Hitching a Ride - Doggy Style!

Hitching a Ride

Nature Getting Along Nicely

Please note that the rodent, named Cheesecake, is a "capybara"
and the world’s largest (and possibly most stoic-looking) rodent

Boxers Fear Me

My Cousin: The Impressed Tortoise

Impressed Tortoises are one of the most unique of the tortoise chelonian species. Though currently rare in private and zoo collections, a large amount of work is taking place on the species in a wide variety of arenas including disease detection, taxonomy and work at the Chengdu Zoo in central China.

The Impressed Tortoise remains something of an enigma, with very little known about the species either in the wild or in captivity. This tortoise can be identified by its relatively flattened carapace, which has a strongly serrated rim and concave scutes, from which the common and scientific names derive.

The carapace is a pale horn to dull orange color, with brown coloring at the center of each scute, blending into darker radiating streaks towards the edges, which contrast starkly with the pale under-color. These markings fade with age, however, and older adults may be nearly uniformly horn colored. While the limbs and tail are dark brown to black, the head is a conspicuous yellow to tan with pink pigment around the snout of some individuals.

It has been reported that this species is from extreme southern Yunnan Province with localities in Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, and Malaysia, with a habitat to be fairly dry and generally away from the water bodies, so this tortoise relies instead on dew or rain-drenched vegetation.

While there are many species that have difficulties adjusting to captivity, this species is far and away the toughest of all, with almost 100% mortality rate among those caught.

The Impressed tortoise is declining in the wild due to exploitation for the Chinese and Vietnamese food markets, and habitat loss as the result of agricultural expansion and uncontrolled forest fires. Additionally, the tortoise’s collection for the pet trade seems to have grown in recent decades.

All Smiles

Meet The African Spurred Tortoise

Croc Encounter - Part II

Meet "Crunch"

HELP!

The Singing Turtle

Odd happening from Ithaca, New York, and this is no April Fool!

Story shared from The Miracle of Nature website,
please visit to check out the entire story and this turtle song!

Lesson Learned

Dinnertime for Franky

Livin' Real Large

Happy Birthday, Mama!

Mating Interloper Gets The Slow Chase

*Please bear with the 15 second advertisement...

Hello, Goofy

Henrí: The Blight of Spring

Anxiously Waiting for the First Day of Spring

Chihuahua Rides Again!

Check out the video version here

Giant Turtle Quietly Seizes Town

The Raspberry Frenzy

A Croc Encounter

...let's not judge - as long as it ends nicely!

Not So Happy Camper

...with goatee...

Hey There, Big Fella!

Alone Again. Naturally.

Fighting My Way Out!