Blanding's Turtles Hunting

[Anthony P]

http://trtlrm.com/11eAubN

Hey guys,

Here is a short video of my blandingii successfully hunting pellets, but not having as much luck with guppies. This yearling pair has been a blast, and I look forward to working with this species for decades to come

Thanks for looking,

Anthony

 

[harris]

One of my favorite species. I kick myself everyday for parting with my group. Love the video, by the way!

 

[Jabuticaba]

Very cool! Tks for sharing!


May[CHERRY BLOSSOM] & Hermann's [TURTLE][TURTLE] (Darwin & Wallace)
Winnipeg, MB, Canada

 

[Anthony P]

Thanks guys. They really are cool. What stinks is the high price of adults. It kinda makes you have to start with hatchlings. And they grow so slow. My guttata grow at least twice as fast, especially in the first year.

 

[Jabuticaba]

Thanks guys. They really are cool. What stinks is the high price of adults. It kinda makes you have to start with hatchlings. And they grow so slow. My guttata grow at least twice as fast, especially in the first year.

I'm not familiar with reptile rates, especially torts and turtles; mine are rescues. What do they go for?

 

[Anthony P]

Adults go for about 7 to 800 bucks right now. Unlike a lot of other turtles, males are kinda rare, so males and females usually sell for around the same.

Turtlesource has a smallish juvenile with nice markings right now for around 400 dollars.

Hatchlings go for 150 to 200 dollars a piece. I hope to get a few more in a few weeks.

 

[Jabuticaba]

That's quite a lot and quite the difference between babies and adults!

 

[Anthony P]

Right.. Pretty much makes the decision for you. That's the good thing. Bad thing is the looooong wait for them to mature.

 

[Jabuticaba]

Right.. Pretty much makes the decision for you. That's the good thing. Bad thing is the looooong wait for them to mature.

But you get to appreciate their babyhood longer.

 

[Anthony P]

True, there is nothing as precious as a baby turtle...

...Except baby turtles hatching..

I wanna appreciate the babyhood of babies I help them to create!!!

 

[Jabuticaba]

True, there is nothing as precious as a baby turtle...

...Except baby turtles hatching..

I wanna appreciate the babyhood of babies I help them to create!!!

Oh, I just realised that they mature around 14-20 YEARS! Yeah, that's a bit excessive and babyhood might get old after 2-3 years. No wonder the poor things are endangered!

 

[Anthony P]

I am thinking more like 6 to 8 years in captivity, but I have yet to speak to anyone who has raised hatchlings to maturity.

 

[Jabuticaba]

I am thinking more like 6 to 8 years in captivity, but I have yet to speak to anyone who has raised hatchlings to maturity.

Interesting! What is it about captivity that would speed up maturity?

 

[theTurtleRoom]

I am thinking more like 6 to 8 years in captivity, but I have yet to speak to anyone who has raised hatchlings to maturity.

Interesting! What is it about captivity that would speed up maturity?

Quite a few things...ease of accessing food is just one. The biggest is the length of growing season. In their native range, their growing season is 3-6 months, depending on where in the range they are and the weather during that given year. However, in captivity, you often see a year-round (or close to it) growing season, except where they are kept outdoors in a climate similar to their native range or unless a breeder purposely cools them for a period.

 

[EricIvins]

Adults go for about 7 to 800 bucks right now. Unlike a lot of other turtles, males are kinda rare, so males and females usually sell for around the same.

Turtlesource has a smallish juvenile with nice markings right now for around 400 dollars.

Hatchlings go for 150 to 200 dollars a piece. I hope to get a few more in a few weeks.

Expect those prices to drop. Now that they are CITES, there is going to be very few outlets for them....

 

[Anthony P]

Really?? Very interesting. I was just speaking to Steve today about where the CB blandingii might be going.. That makes perfect sense Eric.

---

I know it's still kind of early, but there haven't been any available on any classifieds yet this year. Maybe that's a sign that the price might not drop too quickly.

 

[Jabuticaba]

Fascinating!!! Thanks for the zoology lesson!

 

[EricIvins]

It isn't even close to hatching season for these Turtles. 95% of the Blandings production in the US historically went to HK or China. Only a select few will be able to Export any offspring, so that leaves a vast majority to be sold off here in the US. Price will fall unless the black market sucks those animals up. Simple supply and demand...

 

[Anthony P]

Makes sense man. The only two breeders I know are only "about" to get hatchlings.

Maybe I'll be able to work with them even cheaper. I really appreciate your knowledge on this Eric. I obviously knew of their recently being listed on CITES, but wouldn't have known that they were being exported like that. Crazy.