hibernation in mediterranean ?

Status
Not open for further replies.

bobc

New Member
5 Year Member
Joined
Jul 28, 2010
Messages
14
Location (City and/or State)
Cyprus
Hi, this is the 1st winter I have had my greek spur thigh, I live in Cyprus where the weather is now 25 C 70F daytime dropping to 15C 58F at night , the sun always has heat, by end January I expect these temps to drop by 8-10 degrees but still sunny most days ,it never freezes . My tort lives in the walled vegetable garden and has a low house made of stone flags against the house wall under some steps , it is wrapped with roofing felt now as we get occasional rain , I could cover this to make it pretty rainproof when the winter storms come in new year .
He is settled there and comes out for an hour or so to bask and have a wander but is not eating ,only the odd nibble on a hibiscus flower . he has slowed down a lot in the last month , is it feasible to let him stay where he is ? what would you recommend ?
 

CGKeith

Active Member
10 Year Member!
5 Year Member
Joined
Feb 11, 2008
Messages
519
Location (City and/or State)
Arizona
My suggestion is to provide some heat in the tortoise house. Either a heat emitter or a light bulb.
It needs to be able to get warmer.

I provide heat for mine any time that the temps get to 60F or below. You risk it getting sick below 60F, usually upper respiratory infection.

Either that or bring it in for the Winter time and put it in an indoor enclosure, but it will need heat and light inside also.
 

egyptiandan

New Member
10 Year Member!
5 Year Member
Joined
Aug 31, 2007
Messages
5,788
Location (City and/or State)
USA
If you can make a better rain proof house (that the floor also stays above any water that might puddle after a storm), you can let him stay outside all the time. You can also add some hay to his house to dig into.
Do your night time temperatures stay around 4C (and don't go lower) during the winter?

Danny
 

bobc

New Member
5 Year Member
Joined
Jul 28, 2010
Messages
14
Location (City and/or State)
Cyprus
egyptiandan said:
If you can make a better rain proof house (that the floor also stays above any water that might puddle after a storm), you can let him stay outside all the time. You can also add some hay to his house to dig into.
Do your night time temperatures stay around 4C (and don't go lower) during the winter?

Danny
Hi Danny,
The floor of the house is a flat stone 2" thick on top of roofing felt so that water cannot reach him, he has dry thyme spread thin in there ( thyme bed is his favourite garden rest place)I will add some hay to thicken it up. Night temps seldom get as low as 4C , 8 is more typical .
is he likely to acually hibernate or do as he is now but with more sleeping ?
Bob
 

bobc

New Member
5 Year Member
Joined
Jul 28, 2010
Messages
14
Location (City and/or State)
Cyprus
RE: hibernation in mediterranean ? UPDATE

Well we have now had the 1st storm of the winter , and it was extreme , so rather than risk tort getting too damp I put him in a box full of hay in the shed where the temp is pretty constant at 10-11 C . He seems ok there and I can check on him easy , yesterday was the 1st warm day for a week and by afternoon he had moved onto the top of the hay with his eyes open , so I gave him a stroke and a chin tickle , he sat with me for an hour enjoying the sun but not moving , then when the sun dropped he started slowly for the pile of hay so I put him back . I reckon we will do alright looking after him like this and I feel a lot happier that he is in the dry shed .
p.s. I have found out he is from Syria .

Merry Xmas to all and their tortoises
Bob
 

tortoises101

Active Member
5 Year Member
Joined
Nov 10, 2010
Messages
1,390
Location (City and/or State)
Ontario, Canada
RE: hibernation in mediterranean ? UPDATE

bobc said:
Well we have now had the 1st storm of the winter , and it was extreme , so rather than risk tort getting too damp I put him in a box full of hay in the shed where the temp is pretty constant at 10-11 C . He seems ok there and I can check on him easy , yesterday was the 1st warm day for a week and by afternoon he had moved onto the top of the hay with his eyes open , so I gave him a stroke and a chin tickle , he sat with me for an hour enjoying the sun but not moving , then when the sun dropped he started slowly for the pile of hay so I put him back . I reckon we will do alright looking after him like this and I feel a lot happier that he is in the dry shed .
p.s. I have found out he is from Syria .

Merry Xmas to all and their tortoises
Bob

You said he's from Syria? Then he shouldn't hibernate. I would suggest overwintering him in a dry indoor pen with lots of warmth, an additional hour of light per day, and warm baths at least twice a week. And take him outside for natural sun when the weather allows.

Merry Christmas!
 

bobc

New Member
5 Year Member
Joined
Jul 28, 2010
Messages
14
Location (City and/or State)
Cyprus
RE: hibernation in mediterranean ? UPDATE

You said he's from Syria? Then he shouldn't hibernate
I suspect they may have to hibernate for short periods, Cyprus is very close to Syria but the weather in winter can be warmer, currently Damascus Syria is -3 at night , we are around 10, we never see minus degrees. Probably because we are a small island the sea stabilises the temps.
I shall continue to let him dictate what he wants in as natural an environment as possible , he had a wander round the garden today for an hour while the sun was high then went into the hay .
 

tortoises101

Active Member
5 Year Member
Joined
Nov 10, 2010
Messages
1,390
Location (City and/or State)
Ontario, Canada
RE: hibernation in mediterranean ? UPDATE

bobc said:
You said he's from Syria? Then he shouldn't hibernate
I suspect they may have to hibernate for short periods, Cyprus is very close to Syria but the weather in winter can be warmer, currently Damascus Syria is -3 at night , we are around 10, we never see minus degrees. Probably because we are a small island the sea stabilises the temps.
I shall continue to let him dictate what he wants in as natural an environment as possible , he had a wander round the garden today for an hour while the sun was high then went into the hay .

Yeah, but normally North African Testudo hibernate only for short periods of time, and those are only during times when temps are lower than seasonal. Many field researchers have seen T.G. graeca behaving normally in the depth of December, but to which extent this applies to Syrian specimens is unsure. You could hibernate if you want, but I recommending outdoor hibernation as you're more close to the natural range of this species.

Merry Xmas!
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Top