# SA tortoise egg incubation



## ChasingBike (Dec 23, 2013)

Hello everyone,I am very excited!!!!Coz my friend's SA female leopard tortoise laid three eggs yesterday by surprise!They are all fertile!!!!This maybe the first three eggs of SA leopard tortoise in China.We are all so excited,but we only know very little about tortoise incubation.Do you guys know the correct temp and humidity for the eggs to be incubated?We now put them in a box which is contained vermicnlite the way we hatch gecko eggs and turtle eggs.The temp is around 29C,the humidity is controlled at around 70%.My friend told me that there may be more eggs in this week,do you guys think so?Does anyone know how many eggs do a SA leopard tortoise lay in a clutch?And how many clutches would they lay in one year?We only know the normal leopard tortoise would lay 7-20 eggs each clutch.
HAVE A NICE DAY.
Kevin


The eggs are about 40mm in diameter,much bigger than the gecko eggs.lol


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## Yvonne G (Dec 23, 2013)

Hi:

I don't know anything about incubating SA leopard tortoise eggs, but I remember reading something here on the forum that they might require a diapause period.

If you go to the top of this page and type "diapause" in the space for Google Custom Search, you will get quite a few links to read what we've said about diapause.


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## BeeBee*BeeLeaves (Dec 23, 2013)

Congratulations! Little diamonds! First in China for South African leopard eggs, seriously, is a very cool thing! 

Here is an article for you to read by one of top breeders and experts here in the USA, Richard Fife. 
http://www.reptilesmagazine.com/Leopard-Tortoise-Care-And-Breeding-Tips/

He also wrote a book with his brother so it might be a good idea to get it, if you do not already have it, a must have:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0963813064/?tag=exoticpetnetw-20


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## Greg T (Dec 24, 2013)

My leopards have laid between 7 and 13 eggs each clutch. They do not usually partial lay, so most likely she is done, but you never know.

I incubate mine at 87 degrees F and it takes right about 100 days to start breaking out. I keep water trays in the incubator to keep the humidity up.

I leave mine at room temperature for a week before putting them in the incubator, which has worked great for me. Out of all my eggs, I have only had 2 non-fertile and no deaths.

Good luck with yours, hope they all turn out nice and healthy.


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## ChasingBike (Dec 24, 2013)

Yvonne G said:


> Hi:
> 
> I don't know anything about incubating SA leopard tortoise eggs, but I remember reading something here on the forum that they might require a diapause period.
> 
> If you go to the top of this page and type "diapause" in the space for Google Custom Search, you will get quite a few links to read what we've said about diapause.



Thanks!I have asked Tom,he told me that these eggs needs a period of cooling days(3-4weeks temp around 15C) to break the diapause.




BeeBee*BeeLeaves said:


> Congratulations! Little diamonds! First in China for South African leopard eggs, seriously, is a very cool thing!
> 
> Here is an article for you to read by one of top breeders and experts here in the USA, Richard Fife.
> http://www.reptilesmagazine.com/Leopard-Tortoise-Care-And-Breeding-Tips/
> ...



Thanks,I just read that article which is very useful.That book is great to have,but it may take a long time to get the book from USA to China.However I will ask my friend who lives in NY,she would be glad to help me and give that book to me when she comes back to China in Jan.




Greg T said:


> My leopards have laid between 7 and 13 eggs each clutch. They do not usually partial lay, so most likely she is done, but you never know.
> 
> I incubate mine at 87 degrees F and it takes right about 100 days to start breaking out. I keep water trays in the incubator to keep the humidity up.
> 
> ...



Thanks for sharing your experience about incubating tortoise eggs.Although I have fed many different reptiles,this is the FIRST time for me to see tortoise eggs,especially they are laid by a SA leopard tortoise.


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