Eggs hatching from ground!

[TortieLuver]

I know this sounds funny...but when tortoise eggs are buried underground and pierce through the egg, how do they breathe?

The tortoises usually stay and rest while still eating the yolk sac, so how do they breathe underground? How fast do they come to the surface?

 

[cdmay]

Those are good questions.
The first question, 'how do they breathe underground?' is probably something many of us have wondered at one time or another.
But you have to first consider that they are very small reptiles. So their oxygen demands are low. You or I couldn't possibly get enough air when buried underground even if it was only a few inches. But a little turtle, with tiny lungs and a relatively low demand, can do just fine in that environment. Enough air permeates down to the nest chamber (where there is space between each egg) through the ground to keep the new hatchlings alive and well.
The second question basically, 'How long do they stay there?' is also an interesting one but is a question without an exact answer.
It all depends on the species you are speaking about, what the weather conditions are, what the soil conditions are and so on.
But it is safe to say that most tortoise species can remain in the nest chamber for a fairly long time as they await the 'right time' to emerge. How they know when this is one of the intriguing mysteries of their life cycle.

 

[terryo]

I wish you'd write a book.....you always give me goose bumps.

 

[dmmj]

goosebumps is already copyrighted.

 

[TortieLuver]

Thanks so much cdmay! That's awesome and informational feedback! Take care!

 

[ChiKat]

goosebumps is already copyrighted.

haha you crack me up

Great info cdmay!

 

[CGKeith]

I have had a few clutches of Ibera naturally incubate in the ground.

One thing I noticed right away when I found them was that they didn't show the signs of just coming out of the egg. By that I mean that those that hatch in the incubator look "folded" or "out of round" for several days, sometimes a couple of weeks. The ones that have to dig out of the ground, look "round".

This could be partially from the exertion of having to dig out, or from the length of time they stay under ground.

 

[TortieLuver]

When they come to the surface, do they still have their yolk sac?

 

[Yvonne G]

My only in-the-ground experience is with box turtle and water turtle babies. All of the babies that I've hatched in the ground stayed in the nest over the winter and didn't even try to come up until the ground warmed up to over 50 degrees in the spring. Then I would see a small dime-sized hole of perfect proportions in the ground. If I put my finger down into the hole, there was a little nest chamber in the ground. The dirt was not packed solid in there, but a little actual chamber. The babies moving around in the chamber caused a small amount of the dirt to collapse into the chamber, leaving the hole opening at the surface.

 

[CGKeith]

When they come to the surface, do they still have their yolk sac?

No. At least none that I have seen.

 

[moswen]

interesting information... something i have never thought about before!

 

[GBtortoises]

The reason that baby tortoises that hatch naturally in the ground are round with no yolk sac is because they usually spend anywhere from 5-10 days, sometimes more, out of the egg, in the nest. They use a lot of energy just exiting the egg. They then rest and regain their strength by absorbing what nutrition is left in the yolk sac and then make their way above ground. They sometimes remain in the nest underground longer if it is extremely hot and dry above ground. A rainstorm will often trigger their exit from the nest. They almost always all leave the nest together even though they may not have been born on the exact same date. This is probably so that at least a few of them escape predation.

Because most people leave the eggs partially exposed when incubating them and because people are impatient, they (the tortoises) usually are allowed to spend the rest period in the nest and to exit the way they would in the wild. A few Germann keepers do incubate their eggs in the more natural way and their hatchlings emerge as they would in the wild; "unfolded", yolk sac absorbed and fully active. At one of the keepers claim that their hatchlings are much healthier and hardier because of it.