# Turtles playing?



## Pond_Lilly (Oct 3, 2016)

engaging in "incompletely functional behavior differing from more serious versions structurally, contextually, or ontogenetically, and initiated voluntarily when the animal is in a relaxed or low stress setting."

Thoughts? Anecdotes? Observations? Like, would a climbing on top of another juvenile tortoise be considered a "play"?


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## ZEROPILOT (Oct 3, 2016)

No.
It's either a dominating thing or just being clumsy.( IMO.)
The closest thing I've seen to play that has no other obvious explanation would be a tortoise diving into water and actually swimming.
I'm pretty unconvinced that they play. Though I'm no tortoise behavior expert.


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## tortadise (Oct 3, 2016)

Of the numerous species I've kept and keep. All behavior from an array of species has always been within a certain threshold of territorial, breeding rights(which in some species females will instigate the male to combate for a right of copulation), or establishing alpha both in male and female specimens. When reptiles and especially turtles or tortoises hatch and emurge. They are on there own from then on out. What we see in multiple specimens kept together in a "secured" or enclosed habitat is naturally foreign to them, hence establishing aggression, or dominance. They are programmed anatomically, and physically to survive. So they know the territory must be dominated from the get go, this sort of behavior can be extremely stressful.


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## dmmj (Oct 3, 2016)

tortadise said:


> Of the numerous species I've kept and keep. All behavior from an array of species has always been within a certain threshold of territorial, breeding rights(which in some species females will instigate the male to combate for a right of copulation), or establishing alpha both in male and female specimens. When reptiles and especially turtles or tortoises hatch and emurge. They are on there own from then on out. What we see in multiple specimens kept together in a "secured" or enclosed habitat is naturally foreign to them, hence establishing aggression, or dominance. They are programmed anatomically, and physically to survive. So they know the territory must be dominated from the get go, this sort of behavior can be extremely stressful.



I understand the male tortoise's pain. I often have to fight for the right to copulate as well


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## Travis (Oct 11, 2016)

Tortoises/Turtles don't really play together. Or really play I guess. lol.

Closest thing i've personally seen to my tortoises playing is them constantly trying to scale everything in their tank. Climbing on top of their house and just sitting there, then basically jumping off.


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