Ground Hatched Radiated??

zovick

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Have anyone seen a radiated hatch like this?
Hey Blake,
This is similar, but not quite the same as your experience due to the geographic location where it occurred. Years ago, I had a couple of adult Radiated Tortoises on loan to the Honolulu Zoo, and the zoo staff was not overly good at noticing/observing the animals as the nests were laid. Therefore, they found most of the babies they produced walking around in the enclosures with the adults after a rain or after they had watered the grass. This made the allocation of the babies to each party rather complicated as they did not want to just split them 50/50. They insisted on doing DNA tests on the babies to determine which adults produced them (one of mine or one of those belonging to HZ) before they would part with any of them. That took an exceedingly long time, so I asked for my adults to be sent back to me along with the babies once it was all sorted out.
 

BlakeATX

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Hey Blake,
This is similar, but not quite the same as your experience due to the geographic location where it occurred. Years ago, I had a couple of adult Radiated Tortoises on loan to the Honolulu Zoo, and the zoo staff was not overly good at noticing/observing the animals as the nests were laid. Therefore, they found most of the babies they produced walking around in the enclosures with the adults after a rain or after they had watered the grass. This made the allocation of the babies to each party rather complicated as they did not want to just split them 50/50. They insisted on doing DNA tests on the babies to determine which adults produced them (one of mine or one of those belonging to HZ) before they would part with any of them. That took an exceedingly long time, so I asked for my adults to be sent back to me along with the babies once it was all sorted out.
Wow! I had no idea it was even possible as I have been so careful to cool all my eggs before incubation. I guess as they say “Life will find a way”! Very interesting!
 

zovick

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Wow! I had no idea it was even possible as I have been so careful to cool all my eggs before incubation. I guess as they say “Life will find a way”! Very interesting!
Since you mentioned cooling your eggs, as you surmised, the eggs at Honolulu Zoo never were artificially cooled. They just stayed in the nests till they hatched. I am pretty sure the average temp in Honolulu is 78 degrees all year round. Not sure what range of internal temps those nests would have experienced, but certainly it would never be as cool as the temperatures in the low 60's which I used to use when cooling my eggs. The other disappointing thing in all this was that since the nests were not seen when being laid or hatching, we have no idea what the incubation times would have been.

I do know that in ground hatched nests in Madagascar, the incubation times were pretty close to 9 months, much longer than the times we experience here after cooling our eggs for a month.
 

Hutsie B

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that is so neat, you think the others will hatch?
 

C. Nelson

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Have any of you experienced a radiated hatch without incubation?? I was cleaning out my winter enclosure I keep my adults in (basically a big area in my garage with a 12inch deep layer of cypress mulch). I found a NEW BORN radiated! I was completely shocked I thought somehow I had dropped one of my 2month old hatchlings in there. I recounted the others and everyone was accounted for and this one I found still has some of the egg yolk being absorbed so it’s definitely new! I’m now carefully trying to excavate my enclosure to find the nest to see if I have others! Has anyone ever heard of this happening?? I didn’t even think it would be possible without a diapause and my garage is in 80s for the adults. My mind is blown right now! This is the little guy. I’m so glad I noticed him in there! View attachment 302528

He's the cutest thing ever!!
 

BlakeATX

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Yes, I moved them right away into my incubator with the other radiated eggs I have going. It looks like only 2 are possibly viable but who knows. I still put all eggs in incubation. If this one just hatched out naturally, I’d expect to see these others hatch in the next week or so if they are any good. Hopefully so!!
Just had 1 of these hatch! As mentioned i moved these all into my incubator a week ago after finding them. So fingers crossed will get another one or two.
 

BlakeATX

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How many did you end up with from the enclosure hatching/nest?
2 total- one that I found walking around and another that hatched shortly after I moved the clutch to my incubator. I still have a few in the incubator though I’m assuming they are no good. I just leave them in there just in case.
 

mrnewberry

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2 total- one that I found walking around and another that hatched shortly after I moved the clutch to my incubator. I still have a few in the incubator though I’m assuming they are no good. I just leave them in there just in case.

Thanks for the update!
 

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