radiated tortoise color?

NorCal tortoise guy

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I hope to be moving in to the world of radiated tortoise keeping soon so Ive been keeping an eye on adds of hatchlings for sale and Ive noticed a wide price range that seems to be largely dependent on the amount of yellow the baby has on it. So that had me wondering dose the color change as they grow? like many other tortoises I have kept. Or will a radiated tortoise keep the yellow lines it has as a baby? It seems to me they add more yellow as they grow is that true? Thanks in advance for the answers! And please feel free to add pictures!!
 

Yvonne G

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Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but I THINK "High Yellow" refers to their skin??????? @Will ?
 

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A few people seem to notice the skin coloration, and I agree that is more interesting to see an almost neon yellow head and limbs on a radiated. But I am in the minority, most 'high' yellow seems to refer to the number (number and width - only) of the radiating pattern on the shell.

I've seen some with a more art nouveau types of radiant line which I like better, and I have seen some where the actual color intensity is high, but the count of lines and their width is not maximum. If I were to design a radiated by selective breeding it would have intense yellow areola of each scute, jet black scute margins (not marginal scutes) and intense yellow skin with no black blotches. But given that is totally unlikely, I am good with just 'regular' radiated.

They are tougher than leopards, but not as tough as sulcata, and they have great personality like most redfoots. They show what seem to be curiosity and interest in what's going on. They have a lower fecundity, so they will never be bred into the bazillions like sulcata. They are very near the perfect pet tortoise for larger indoor enclosures or outside if you have the space and climate.
 

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I like Will's insights here. I have to agree.

Yes, color can change, but some of the people breeding these know their lines and they have a pretty good idea how the babies will turn out. @zovick would be the one to ask here. He's been breeding this species since the 60s. The Godfather of tortoise breeding and radiata.
 

zovick

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I like Will's insights here. I have to agree.

Yes, color can change, but some of the people breeding these know their lines and they have a pretty good idea how the babies will turn out. @zovick would be the one to ask here. He's been breeding this species since the 60s. The Godfather of tortoise breeding and radiata.

Thanks for the kind words, Tom.

In my experience, the term "high yellow" applied to Radiated Tortoises refers to the shell pattern/coloration, not the head or skin color. If the tortoise in question has very yellow skin, that would be added to the animal's description separately.

Here are pix of a few Radiated Tortoises which I consider high yellow. Some are higher yellow than others, but all of these are more yellow than average.

HYP 3.jpg

High Yellow Group.jpg

#966 Radiated A.jpg

#1317 Radiated.jpg
 

zovick

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I hope to be moving in to the world of radiated tortoise keeping soon so Ive been keeping an eye on adds of hatchlings for sale and Ive noticed a wide price range that seems to be largely dependent on the amount of yellow the baby has on it. So that had me wondering dose the color change as they grow? like many other tortoises I have kept. Or will a radiated tortoise keep the yellow lines it has as a baby? It seems to me they add more yellow as they grow is that true? Thanks in advance for the answers! And please feel free to add pictures!!

Some Radiated Tortoises may tend to get less yellow as they grow, while others may add more and more yellow as they grow. As Tom said, it is sometimes tied to their bloodlines, and 95% of the people breeding the species today don't have enough history doing it to predict what their animals may grow to become or what they may produce. After all, the minimum age to breed one of these tortoises is nine, so breeding two generations takes 18-20 years at the least.

Here is an example of one which looked great as a hatchling in 2008 and stayed that way all the way to adulthood.

#1622 Radiated A.jpg
 

NorCal tortoise guy

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Some Radiated Tortoises may tend to get less yellow as they grow, while others may add more and more yellow as they grow. As Tom said, it is sometimes tied to their bloodlines, and 95% of the people breeding the species today don't have enough history doing it to predict what their animals may grow to become or what they may produce. After all, the minimum age to breed one of these tortoises is nine, so breeding two generations takes 18-20 years at the least.

Here is an example of one which looked great as a hatchling in 2008 and stayed that way all the way to adulthood.

View attachment 252250


wow they seem to very so much
as long as i have your ear can i ask a few more questions?

after I get radiated tortoises would I need a CBW permit to move them with me to another state If I relocate?

Also Ive been looking for a breeder near me because i don't yet have a permit and have talked to Jimmy Chu he is a member here so that gives me some confidence but i wondered if you or anyone else has had dealings with him and can give feedback
 

zovick

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wow they seem to very so much
as long as i have your ear can i ask a few more questions?

after I get radiated tortoises would I need a CBW permit to move them with me to another state If I relocate?

Also Ive been looking for a breeder near me because i don't yet have a permit and have talked to Jimmy Chu he is a member here so that gives me some confidence but i wondered if you or anyone else has had dealings with him and can give feedback

You don't need a CBW Permit to move your own Radiated Tortoises anywhere that you may go. It is only needed to buy or sell them to someone who is from a different state than the one in which you are a legal resident.

I haven't got any experience which Jimmy Chu, but know people who have bought tortoises from him. They were not Radiated Tortoises, but the buyers seemed to be pleased enough with their purchases. FWIW, I don't know if Jimmy's CBW permit is still valid. It may have expired by now.
 

NorCal tortoise guy

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You don't need a CBW Permit to move your own Radiated Tortoises anywhere that you may go. It is only needed to buy or sell them to someone who is from a different state than the one in which you are a legal resident.

I haven't got any experience which Jimmy Chu, but know people who have bought tortoises from him. They were not Radiated Tortoises, but the buyers seemed to be pleased enough with their purchases. FWIW, I don't know if Jimmy's CBW permit is still valid. It may have expired by now.


Thanks!
 

Yvonne G

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Some Radiated Tortoises may tend to get less yellow as they grow, while others may add more and more yellow as they grow. As Tom said, it is sometimes tied to their bloodlines, and 95% of the people breeding the species today don't have enough history doing it to predict what their animals may grow to become or what they may produce. After all, the minimum age to breed one of these tortoises is nine, so breeding two generations takes 18-20 years at the least.

Here is an example of one which looked great as a hatchling in 2008 and stayed that way all the way to adulthood.

View attachment 252250
I'm new to radiated tortoise, and if I were shown this tortoise with no explanation, I would be at a loss to I.D. it. What a beauty!
 

William Lee Kohler

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Some Radiated Tortoises may tend to get less yellow as they grow, while others may add more and more yellow as they grow. As Tom said, it is sometimes tied to their bloodlines, and 95% of the people breeding the species today don't have enough history doing it to predict what their animals may grow to become or what they may produce. After all, the minimum age to breed one of these tortoises is nine, so breeding two generations takes 18-20 years at the least.

Here is an example of one which looked great as a hatchling in 2008 and stayed that way all the way to adulthood.

View attachment 252250

FANTASTIC pattern and color but terrible pyramiding. What happened? Is this pattern and color readily available?
Most Radiateds are OK looking but I just can't stop obssessing over this one. Beautiful and very reminiscent of Chersina.
 
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zovick

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FANTASTIC pattern and color but terrible pyramiding. What happened? Is this pattern and color readily available?
Most Radiateds are OK looking but I just can't stop obssessing over this one. Beautiful and very reminiscent of Chersina.

I personally would not call that "terrible pyramiding". I have seen plenty of tortoises which look much worse. I sold that tortoise as a hatchling, so have no idea why it has some pyramiding.

Ones which are colored and patterned like that tortoise are about one in a thousand (or even 1 in 2500), so no, they are not readily available. The owner of that tortoise has turned down a $15K offer for it if that tells you anything.
 

William Lee Kohler

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I personally would not call that "terrible pyramiding". I have seen plenty of tortoises which look much worse. I sold that tortoise as a hatchling, so have no idea why it has some pyramiding.

Ones which are colored and patterned like that tortoise are about one in a thousand (or even 1 in 2500), so no, they are not readily available. The owner of that tortoise has turned down a $15K offer for it if that tells you anything.

Do you happen to have a pic of this one as a baby for ID of future look alikes? My wild guess is that the one pictured is female but even if not do you know if it is in a reproductive program and if offspring would be sold?
 

zovick

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Do you happen to have a pic of this one as a baby for ID of future look alikes? My wild guess is that the one pictured is female but even if not do you know if it is in a reproductive program and if offspring would be sold?

It is a female, and the owner has other Radiateds, but I don't know their sexes. The owner is not an experienced breeder, so offspring are a question mark as of now. Also the owner no longer has a CBW permit and lives in a different state than you do, so you would not be able to purchase one in any event.

Sorry, but I no longer have any pictures of this one as a baby.
 

William Lee Kohler

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Thanks for answering again. If they wanted to sell any I imagine they and I would/could deal with the permit issue so not such a biggie. Not like shipping from Africa anyway. Where there's a will. Would you be able to recognize such a hatchling if you saw one again? I did notice the centers of the visible scutes all or most seemed to be solid yellow but it could have been an optical delusion. It seems there's no one in Oregon that breeds anything rare:(! I would value getting one or more of this color and pattern just about as much as getting a yniphora even if not as much monetarily.
Any chance you could get me in touch with this ones owner please?
 

zovick

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Thanks for answering again. If they wanted to sell any I imagine they and I would/could deal with the permit issue so not such a biggie. Not like shipping from Africa anyway. Where there's a will. Would you be able to recognize such a hatchling if you saw one again? I did notice the centers of the visible scutes all or most seemed to be solid yellow but it could have been an optical delusion. It seems there's no one in Oregon that breeds anything rare:(! I would value getting one or more of this color and pattern just about as much as getting a yniphora even if not as much monetarily.
Any chance you could get me in touch with this ones owner please?

The owner is not interested in discussing the animals, nor renewing the CBW Permit, and I have been asked not to give out any information.

Also, getting a permit is just about impossible these days. If you look around, you can find a thread about that very problem on this site. I am not even going to try to renew mine (which I have held since they were first required back in 1978 or 1979 because I feel it would simply be an exercise in futility.

You can check the application here: https://www.fws.gov/forms/3-200-41.pdf
 

enchilada

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is it possible to get high quality/high yellow radiata sperms and do artificial insemination at home ?
 
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