CA Desert Torts?

[RascalDesertTort]

who here has oe of these cuties besides me? I've noticed most of the desert dwellars here are sulcatas

 

[Shelly]

Not too many owners are posting about their DTs because they are all hibernating right now (the torts, not the owners). There are plenty of owners. I have 3.

 

[Yvonne G]

I have one pen with a male and female and another pen with a male and three females. Then throughout the summer, I usually have several isolation pens with rescued males who are waiting to be adopted.

 

[dmmj]

I own one DT 19 years old, goes by the name of tank.

 

[Shelly]

I have one pen with a male and female and another pen with a male and three females. Then throughout the summer, I usually have several isolation pens with rescued males who are waiting to be adopted.

What do you do with rescued females?

 

[Yvonne G]

I have one pen with a male and female and another pen with a male and three females. Then throughout the summer, I usually have several isolation pens with rescued males who are waiting to be adopted.

What do you do with rescued females?

If you send me pictures of your tortoise pen so that I can see if it is a safe place for a tortoise to live, I will adopt one out to you...however, you have to come pick it up...no shipping.

 

[Shelly]

I have one pen with a male and female and another pen with a male and three females. Then throughout the summer, I usually have several isolation pens with rescued males who are waiting to be adopted.

What do you do with rescued females?

If you send me pictures of your tortoise pen so that I can see if it is a safe place for a tortoise to live, I will adopt one out to you...however, you have to come pick it up...no shipping.

Huh? I wasn't asking to adopt one, I was just asking why you you have isolation pens for males, but none for females?

 

[dmmj]

males like to fight more than females.

 

[dreadyA]

uhhhh, OT, but out of all banners, why is p a p a j o h n s pizza here . haha

 

[kimber_lee_314]

I have 5 (and am babysitting a little hatchling right now.) They are the best - super personalities!

 

[Yvonne G]

I wasn't asking to adopt one, I was just asking why you you have isolation pens for males, but none for females?

No. The females are few and far between. I get 99% more males than females. In fact, in all the years I've been taking in rescued turtles and tortoises, I can count on one hand the number of female desert tortoises I have taken in.

 

[Shelly]

Why is that? Is the population skewed that much?

 

[Yvonne G]

I really don't know. I doubt its the temperature/sex/egg thing because a higher temperature produces females. Its pretty hot in the desert. Maybe more people keep the females and turn in the males. Who knows.

 

[Shelly]

That's really odd. I do remember you mentioning that in the past... Is the same disparity documented in wild populations?

 

[Yvonne G]

If you scroll down to table 5 on page 179, you'll see that there are more males in the wild than females:

http://quest.nasa.gov/projects/spacewardbound/docs/Mojave6.pdf

 

[galvinkaos]

I have Doris and Maude hatched Oct 2007 (still too young to know male/female). They aren't hibernating. They live inside, but they have gotten to enjoy a few of our warm days outside.

Dawna

(Avatar is Doris and Fred (Fred is no longer with us RIP))

 

[cuppidsarrows]

Between me and my boyfriend we have 4 the oldest is a year and the 3 youngest were all hatched August 2009.

 

[Madortoise]

I have a 4 years old; too early to tell the gender but I call her Penelope. She's hibernating now. I love her so much--she brings out the best in me.