The habitat of Star tortoises

EricIvins

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Funny how these "CITES I" animals are actually CITES II for anyone who cares...
 

Moozillion

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Wow. So since I live in south Louisiana, which is hot and HUMID, I don't have to just DREAM about stars - I could actually KEEP one, and it would likely stay healthy in our climate (provided, of course, that the rest of my husbandry is up to snuff) :)
 

Tom

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I'm not able to watch the video right now, but I will later. Thank you for posting and sharing this with us. I've always wondered about this...
 

Neal

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Very nice star! I didn't catch where he was exactly?
 

Tom

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Neal said:
Very nice star! I didn't catch where he was exactly?

He mentioned Sri Lanka... Didn't actually say thats where he was though.
 

Neal

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I heard him say Sri Lanka too, but I thought he said "over in Sri Lanka"...I can't watch it again until this evening.
 

Kapidolo Farms

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Eric's hearing is much better than mine, I had no clue he referred to CITES 'till I read Eric's text of the sound bite.

The man on camera does talk about "in" Sri Lanka, and there are tea plantations there (on the Island and in the video), as well as a long term war, which relates to the topic of the exaggerated US value he states.

Does it look like a Sri Lanka type to you?

He also uses words banned on TFO that are fine on regular TV, I heard those words just fine, several times.

Also interesting is that he heard it before he saw it, that is how I have found many box turtles and a few tortoises.

Cool video.

Will
 

skottip

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I live in the hot an humid capital of the US(S Fla) and have successfully raised and bred Indians and Burmese Stars.
Outside, year round. No umbrellas. No dehumidifiers. Of course unless it gets cold and it does get cold down here sometimes. Then I take them in for the night.

Scott
 

Neal

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OK, watched it again. I would say he's in Sri Lanka. He mentions that it is the only terrestrial tortoise found in Sri Lanka.

Funny about hearing them before seeing them. That's how I find most of my stars. Their pens have huge clusters of fountain grass that they hide in. When I go out to check on them, I usually stop and listen before digging around the grass.
 

AnnV

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It says content not found. Is it my phone or connection?! Wahaaa!!! D:

Ann from CT
 

Kapidolo Farms

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I don't have any kind of Stars, Indian, Sri Lanka, or Burmese, nor the very rarely spoken of Pakistani variant. Is there some concern about how humid or dry that they should be maintained at, at all, or as it pertains to pyramiding perceived as 'natural' or an artifact of captive husbandry?

Paludarium, is that the point of your post?


AnnV said:
It says content not found. Is it my phone or connection?! Wahaaa!!! D:

Ann from CT

YES, did not work on my mobile device either. Will
 

paludarium

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Will said:
I don't have any kind of Stars, Indian, Sri Lanka, or Burmese, nor the very rarely spoken of Pakistani variant. Is there some concern about how humid or dry that they should be maintained at, at all, or as it pertains to pyramiding perceived as 'natural' or an artifact of captive husbandry?

Paludarium, is that the point of your post?
Exactly. Many keepers raise their star tortoises in the dry pens, as a result star tortoises are vulnerable to bladder stones and pyramiding. We eventually see the real habitat of the star tortoises in Sri Lanka, and now we know that the climate out there is hot and humid in certain seasons.

Erich
 

Kapidolo Farms

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Wow, I see. Hmm, another "war story" anecdote from Will follows . . .

That poultry company I worked for in California's central Valley, had a vet that was 'into' herps, whose wife was Sri Lankan. He went there frequently to meet family, and on occasion do some outreach with local chicken farmers, a genuinely nice person. He chatted up the stars there, that would hang around some farmers places while not others. The tortoises would come out of the nearby over growth and eat the chicken feces. He never mentioned pyramiding as an aesthetic aspect to the tortoises. I think he would have being both a vet and 'herp' man.
That's all. Will
 

AnnV

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Okay. I did a search on the site for "Star tortoise" and the vid came up for me on my phone.

Not to make an argument, but even though it was obviously very wet and humid at the time of the video, the particular wild tort that he found on the spot there, was not a totally smooth shell.
Just saying...
Ann from CT
 

Neal

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Most Sri Lanka stars will show some pyramiding, even those found in the wild. I've seen several Sri Lanka stars raised in the high humid set ups that we encourage on the forum still show some pyramiding. The pyramiding is not bad by any means, but the shell is as smooth as other types of tortoises raised in the same type of set up.

While this video does show one found in a wet and humid climate, Indian stars are found in a wide range of climate types. Sort of like leopards. They've been known to inhabit dry arid areas and more tropical type, high humid areas. It's important to note that even in the arid areas, there is usually a monsoon season. Actually, the whole reproductive cycle of Indian stars is in sync with the different monsoon cycles.

In the US, a lot of breeders have a lot of success breeding them here in the desert southwest where it is dry with a summer monsoon season. And a lot of breeders have success in Florida, where it's obviously warm and humid all the time.
 

paludarium

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Unless we raise the star tortoise babies with closed chambers by Tom's method, it's very hard for us to come to conclusion.

Erich
 

AnnV

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Re: RE: The habitat of Star tortoises

jacktaylor900 said:
Lol he's just like ITS A FREAKING STAR TORTOISE

LOL IKR!
I guess a 200 mph cyclone (or is it typhoon) is hitting Star tortoise land as we speak. They said it was hitting a less populated area. I hope the torts and other wildlife can hunker down and survive. I can't imagine 200 mph winds and rain!

Ann from CT
 
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