Finally, some ornata.

[Turtlepete]

Nothing particularly special or rare about these guys, but for me it's pretty exciting, as I've been trying to reproduce them for years. Never caught my T. o. ornata laying eggs, but apparently a clutch incubated in-ground. This was the exact sight I saw upon opening their enclosure this morning that made me scream with joy like a little girl.

There were five hatchlings in total, but one was dead. No idea how long they had hatched for, but yolks were completely absorbed, and they were quite feisty and lively little things.

I decided to set them up individually in containers inside of a closed chamber.

The one above was already chowing down on some soaked mazuri aquatic in the water dish.

Pretty excited about these guys. Hopefully more to come!

 

[CanadianTestudo]

that is such a cool experience

 

[Merrick]

Congrats

 

[Yvonne G]

Aw. How nice. And always such a treat to see. I like that you've set them up like that, but wonder why? I know little box turtles are quite carnivorous, and I've experienced bitten off tails. Is this the reason for separate habitats?

 

[Turtlepete]

Aw. How nice. And always such a treat to see. I like that you've set them up like that, but wonder why? I know little box turtles are quite carnivorous, and I've experienced bitten off tails. Is this the reason for separate habitats?

I've heard that ornata hatchlings in specific are quite aggressive and may cannibalize each other. No prior experience to validate this, but I'm not willing to risk them! Not to mention, I like keeping them in small setups that I can keep track of them. I could've given all four the run of the whole 4x2 closed chamber, but would be very difficult to find them and assure they are eating. Keeping them individually allow me to keep an eye on each one.

You'd know the father.

(If you get a chance, can you remove that photo that doesn't seem to be showing? I can't edit at this point.)

 

[Torch]

Congrats! They look great!