Just curious if non-gravid females can exhibit nesting behavior? I have a female that have seen nesting twice in the past two weeks but no eggs. I do have a male but he is a bit smaller than here and I would be surprised if he was able to breed.
redfoot nesting
- Thread starter mikem.dvm
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Hi Mikem.dvm:
Welcome to the forum!!
May we know your name and where you're from?
Sometimes they dig several test nests prior to digging the real nest.
Welcome to the forum!!
May we know your name and where you're from?
Sometimes they dig several test nests prior to digging the real nest.
emysemys said:
Sorry still setting up my account...
Just to clarify my question a bit...
I understand that she may be looking the right spot, but I was trying to find if anyone has experienced a female exhibiting nesting behavior and was either not gravid or perhaps passed unfertilized eggs?
mikem.dvm said:
Hi Mikem. The answers to your questions are, NO and YES.
A 'non-gravid' female, or one that is not carrying eggs will not go through the exercise of nesting behavior. Or maybe I should qualify that by saying I have never seen one do so, or heard or read of that before.
On the other hand, a female that has never been bred or that has never even been in the presence of a male can and will nest and lay infertile eggs. This seems odd but it does happen.
In the cases that I know of the females in question were raised indoors from hatchlings and had never once been kept with anything other than one or two other females that were likewise raised in seclusion. In one instance three females were raised together from hatchlings but at around nine years of age one of the females started nesting behavior and laid several clutches of perfectly formed but infertile eggs. This female also engaged in prolonged nest searching behavior (a couple of weeks) and dug at least three or four nest chambers before she finally dropped her first eggs. It might be that as this female was in an indoor enclosure she had difficulty in locating a nest site that suited her.
I know that the owner was frantic about her becoming egg bound, but as they say...everything came out OK.
Of course, there is always the remote (and I do mean very remote) possibility that such an isolated female could lay fertile eggs. Parthenogenetic (which is fertile eggs or young being produced by a genuine virgin female) clutches of offspring have been recorded in a number of snake species and is fairly well known in at least a few species of lizards too. But I am not aware of parthenogenesis being recorded in any turtles.
Yet.
I have had quite a few female tortoises "phantom" nest. They will dig a nest, not lay any eggs and than cover the nest back up. I've had it happen with Greeks, Egyptians and Chacos.
Well you've heard of it now Carl
Danny
Well you've heard of it now Carl
Danny
egyptiandan said:I have had quite a few female tortoises "phantom" nest. They will dig a nest, not lay any eggs and than cover the nest back up. I've had it happen with Greeks, Egyptians and Chacos.
Well you've heard of it now Carl
Danny
Interesting. But did those same females of yours nest and lay eggs within a reasonable length of time of the phantom nestings?
In other words, is it possible they were actually gravid, but just did not produce eggs at those particular nesting events?
I too have had females dig holes and then cover the nests as if they had laid eggs in them even they they didn't. But then those same females would actually produce eggs a few days or maybe a week or so later. So they were in fact gravid when they phantom nested.
My phantom nestings have been 14 to 30 days after nesting with eggs. Though some have started out "the season" with a phantom nesting and than laying eggs 21 to 30 days later. Most have also laid eggs 14 to 30 days after phantom nesting.
So no I haven't had a female yet that has phantom nested and than laid again in a shorter than normal period of time.
Interestingly enough I have a CB female Libyan greek who has only ever phantom nested. She has been with a WC and a CB male (the CB male now). The WC male was proven. I have no idea what is up with her but she has phantom nested once or twice a year for the last 4 years.
Danny
So no I haven't had a female yet that has phantom nested and than laid again in a shorter than normal period of time.
Interestingly enough I have a CB female Libyan greek who has only ever phantom nested. She has been with a WC and a CB male (the CB male now). The WC male was proven. I have no idea what is up with her but she has phantom nested once or twice a year for the last 4 years.
Danny
Hmmmmmm interesting. I guess I'll get an x-ray on her to find out if there are any eggs fertile or not. If there is nothing there then she is just showing odd behavior. If there are eggs well have to wait and see if they are fertile.
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