Is a Greek Tortoise right for me?

[zacheyp]

Also i read that greeks like to burrow, how deep should i make my substrate?

 

[NudistApple]

That isn't a UVB bulb. A bulb that says "UV Bulb" means that it only emits UVA. Here are examples UVB bulbs;
http://www.carolinapetsupply.com/catalog/images/ReptiSun10.JPG
http://lllreptile.com/load-image/StoreInventoryImage/image/3767
http://www.monsterreef.com/images/REPTILEGOODS/ZMUVB160.jpg

Without UVB diurnal reptiles can't synthesize D3, and are at risk of developing metabolic bone disease.

My Greek is 2.5", and I have a gradient depth of substrate in her enclosure, it's 5-6" at the deepest and 1-2 and the shallow end.

 

[austinSOLO]

i would like a golden greek as well but they are too expensive for me

 

[GeoTerraTestudo]

Hi Gaddy,

Maybe a bit of confusion: terrestris came from SE-Turkey-> down to Israel. Except Lebanon and some Israel locations, most of the terrestris distribution is drier or equally drier than ibera areal. Equally drier or wetter for ibera, but MUCH colder, results in an incomparable hardiness, as you said.
It sounded like a paradox- how a species from a drier area can be hardier than one coming from a wetter one? Well, it works for nabeulensis too... quite wet in some parts of its habitat, but notorious for its sensitivity... but most Ibera came from Turkey or Balkans, where is both colder and wetter than terrestris areal.

Bump - I forgot to reply to your post!

As a boy in Israel, I used to catch-and-release native Testudo graeca terrestris near the Mediterranean coast. It was quite warm and humid there (in the summertime, over 80*F and over 70% humidity). Even in desert areas, although precipitation is low, the high temperature and proximity to large bodies of water still keeps humidity fairly high.

Contrast that with colder, inland, high-altitude places, where condensation and lower atmospheric pressure pulls moisture right out of the air. Continental climates often have much lower humidity than coastal areas.

For this reason, I consider Ibera Greeks, eastern Hermanns, and Russian tortoises to be more robust than other Mediterranean tortoises.

 

[CactusVinnie]

Agree, Gaddy! But I think in terms of dangerous water, that came from the sheer quantity of precipitations and time of year, then the atmospheric humidity. So, even if inland (lower humidity), Balkan tortoises are much more moisture hardier than coastal (higher humidity) graeca complex tortoises.

About Horsfields- I think that except of cold, their moisture hardiness is much lower than a Western Hermanni. French usually keep hermanni in the same conditions as boettgeri, and consider them even more hardier than Ibera in terms of moisture hardiness.
But while Hermanni and Boettgeri try to escape persistent heat and look for cool and more humid corners, Ibera still roams and ask food !

BTW... today the first 2 Ibera clutches start to hatch!! 3 eggs out of 13 today! From now on, I hope to get an avalanche of healthy, beautiful babies- 39 eggs/6 clutches/4 females, per total. Always terrified about anomalies, even if all 12 babies of the last year are perfect. This year I incubated hotter, instead of 32-33, I had 34-36*C.

 

[GeoTerraTestudo]

Agree, Gaddy! But I think in terms of dangerous water, that came from the sheer quantity of precipitations and time of year, then the atmospheric humidity. So, even if inland (lower humidity), Balkan tortoises are much more moisture hardier than coastal (higher humidity) graeca complex tortoises.

About Horsfields- I think that except of cold, their moisture hardiness is much lower than a Western Hermanni. French usually keep hermanni in the same conditions as boettgeri, and consider them even more hardier than Ibera in terms of moisture hardiness.
But while Hermanni and Boettgeri try to escape persistent heat and look for cool and more humid corners, Ibera still roams and ask food !

BTW... today the first 2 Ibera clutches start to hatch!! 3 eggs out of 13 today! From now on, I hope to get an avalanche of healthy, beautiful babies- 39 eggs/6 clutches/4 females, per total. Always terrified about anomalies, even if all 12 babies of the last year are perfect. This year I incubated hotter, instead of 32-33, I had 34-36*C.

Re: climate
I think we are on the same page. Hermann, Ibera, and Russian are all cold-tolerant, but appear to have different humidity preferences, with Hermanns living in fairly high humidity, Ibera a bit lower, and Russians lower still.

Re: breeding
I am so happy to hear you have eggs! Best of luck to you and your new babies. I hope you post pictures soon.