Testudo Hermani and Tesudo Graeca eggs

Xelioszzapporro

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Good evening. Today I have 4 questions of two Mediterranean Turtles. The one is Testudo Hermani also known as Herman's Turtle the other is Testudo Graeca also known as Greek Turtle.

I am well aware of the 7 differences between those 2 species. And I recently found out the difference between males and females. But I have 4 questions that I would really need to find out ?


1. How long is the incubation of their eggs ?

2. At what age they mate ?

3. How many hours do they sleep a day ?

4. Is it true that they live for over a hundred years ? Because an old man told me they leave 100 years at least...
 

Tom

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Good evening. Today I have 4 questions of two Mediterranean Turtles. The one is Testudo Hermani also known as Herman's Turtle the other is Testudo Graeca also known as Greek Turtle.

I am well aware of the 7 differences between those 2 species. And I recently found out the difference between males and females. But I have 4 questions that I would really need to find out ?


1. How long is the incubation of their eggs ?

2. At what age they mate ?

3. How many hours do they sleep a day ?

4. Is it true that they live for over a hundred years ? Because an old man told me they leave 100 years at least...
1. 60-90 days. Depends on species and temperatures.
2. Its not age, it is size AND age. There are many variables here, including: Whether or not they are brumated, how they were started as babies, how well hydrated they are kept, what they are fed, how they are housed, etc... I have seen as early as 4 years old, and typical 6-7 years old.
3. Highly variable depending on many factors including the season, the climate, current weather, and how they are housed. They sleep about the same amount as any other tortoise species does.
4. No one knows the lifespan of tortoises. Any number you read was either made up, or it is someone else's made up number being repeated. There have been many tortoises on record at well over 100 years. We've only been captive breeding in significant numbers since the 90s, and most of those babies have been started poorly. It will probably be 100-200 years before we have any sort of idea on this.
 

Xelioszzapporro

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1. 60-90 days. Depends on species and temperatures.
2. Its not age, it is size AND age. There are many variables here, including: Whether or not they are brumated, how they were started as babies, how well hydrated they are kept, what they are fed, how they are housed, etc... I have seen as early as 4 years old, and typical 6-7 years old.
3. Highly variable depending on many factors including the season, the climate, current weather, and how they are housed. They sleep about the same amount as any other tortoise species does.
4. No one knows the lifespan of tortoises. Any number you read was either made up, or it is someone else's made up number being repeated. There have been many tortoises on record at well over 100 years. We've only been captive breeding in significant numbers since the 90s, and most of those babies have been started poorly. It will probably be 100-200 years before we have any sort of idea on this.

Thank you for your all the info sir! I really like Testudo Hermani and Tesudo Graeca as well as other 3 Mediterranean Turtle species. So learning more about them is certainly great!
Also , I was reading more about the Aldabra Giant Tortoise and the oldest one today is called Jonathan who apparently around 190 years old according to the wiki.....and there are even photos of the 1880 I believe in his wiki.
Unless they are made up as you said.
 

Tom

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Also , I was reading more about the Aldabra Giant Tortoise and the oldest one today is called Jonathan who apparently around 190 years old according to the wiki.....and there are even photos of the 1880 I believe in his wiki.
Unless they are made up as you said.
I'm not familiar with Jonathon, but there have been several verifiable accounts of turtles and tortoises living well over 100 years. We know how long some of them can live in these rare verifiable circumstances, but we have no idea what the "general" life span is for any turtle or tortoise species. There may be records of Jonathon that are 190 years old, but how do we know he wasn't 190 years old when those records started. How do we know some other large weathered Aldabran tortoise isn't 1000 years old? How do we know Jonathan isn't some rare unusual case? Maybe he's twice as old as they usually get, or maybe he's only half as old as they can live? No one knows.

When large numbers of the ones we are breeding now start to die off of old age, and someone has been able to keep records and update them to every new computer format that comes out, e.g: Floppy discs, CDs, Zip drives, thumbnails, the cloud, etc..., only then when many examples have been compiled and verified will we begin to have an idea of a typical tortoise life span.

Until that time, I find cases of verifiable long lived tortoises fascinating.
 

Xelioszzapporro

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I'm not familiar with Jonathon, but there have been several verifiable accounts of turtles and tortoises living well over 100 years. We know how long some of them can live in these rare verifiable circumstances, but we have no idea what the "general" life span is for any turtle or tortoise species. There may be records of Jonathon that are 190 years old, but how do we know he wasn't 190 years old when those records started. How do we know some other large weathered Aldabran tortoise isn't 1000 years old? How do we know Jonathan isn't some rare unusual case? Maybe he's twice as old as they usually get, or maybe he's only half as old as they can live? No one knows.

When large numbers of the ones we are breeding now start to die off of old age, and someone has been able to keep records and update them to every new computer format that comes out, e.g: Floppy discs, CDs, Zip drives, thumbnails, the cloud, etc..., only then when many examples have been compiled and verified will we begin to have an idea of a typical tortoise life span.

Until that time, I find cases of verifiable long lived tortoises fascinating.

Yeah , I see where you coming from. I agree with you sir!
 

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