How to take care of a red eared slider tutrle eggs?

We have two red eared slider turltes and the ladie we got them from said they are both males but one had 6 eggs and we stuck them in a tupper ware container and put saran wrap around it and poked 7 holes but is there any thing else we are supposed to do for them? AND when theyhatch where is the best place to take them?

How to take care of a red eared slider tutrle eggs?
The main things to remember about turtle eggs is not to let them turn over and to sanitize the container you put them in. It's too late for both, now. You mighe want to soak some absorbent cotton in water, then wring it out as best you can, so it is barely damp. Then put it in with or over the eggs. Replace the saran wrap and don't put holes in it this time. Keep the eggs in a place that maintains an even temperature, such as the top of the refrigerator. Then be patient for a couple of months.





Once they hatch, do NOT release them unless you are within the turtles' natural range. Give them to turtle-loving friends or keep them yourself.
Reply:Zander Y is incompetent since he gave you info on the desert tortoise which is the opposite of a RES! As long as the eggs haven't collapsed and have been placed somewhere warm they may still be viable. The best thing to do would be to build an incubator. To build a cheap one I use a small tank like the 6.3 liter hexagons that walmart sells. I usually vermiculite as the bedding but this time I might use perlite. You'll want to keep the bedding moist and the temp around 80-83F. I use a spray bottle with pure water and I spray around the eggs not directly at them. If they are too moist fungus grows on them. that's why I use sport bottle caps with bedding inside to keep the eggs in so that I can move them around without accidentally rolling them. After 3 months the eggs should hatch and you can either take them to a turtle rescue center. By law, pet stores can't sell them unless they are at least 4" long so that's out of the question until you keep them long enough.
Reply:Description





The Desert Tortoise is an herbivore that may attain a length of 9 to 15 inches in upper shell (carapace) length. The tortoise is able to live where ground temperature may exceed 140 degrees F because of its ability to dig underground burrows and escape the heat. At least 95% of its life is spent in burrows. There, it is also protected from freezing while dormant, November through February or March.





The Sonoran Desert Tortoise is flat and pear-shaped compared to the Western Mojave tortoise which is more butterball shape; they are usually active in spring. The Sonoran Desert tortoise is more active in summer and seek shade under large rocks and boulders. It is possible that northern and southern Desert Tortoises may one day be designated as different species or subspecies.





The presence of soil suitable for digging burrows is a limiting factor to Desert Tortoise distribution. Some of their burrows just extend beyond the shell of the tortoise inside. Others extend for several feet. A single tortoise may have a dozen or more burrows distributed over its home range. These burrows may be used by different tortoises at different times.








Curious Facts





The Desert Tortoise is able to live where ground temperature may exceed 140 degrees F.





95% of a Desert Tortoise’s life is spent in underground burrows





Ravens have caused more than 50 percent of juvenile Desert Tortoise deaths in some areas of the Mojave Desert.





Adult tortoises may survive a year or more without access to water.





Desert Tortoise populations have declined by 90 percent since the 1980s





Ravens are now one of the Desert turtle’s primary predators.





Much of the tortoise’s water intake comes from moisture in the grasses and wildflowers they consume in the spring.





It is unlawful to touch, harm, harass or collect a wild Desert Tortoise














Vocalization





Desert Tortoises make hisses, pops and poink sounds, perhaps as fear and distress calls. Males to grunt when mating.





Horn





Both sexes have a gular horn -- an anterior extension of the plastron (lower shell). The horn is longer in males and often upturned. Males use these in fighting with other males, attempting to insert the horn under the anterior edge of the carapace and by twisting to the side, flip the other male on its back. The opponent attempts to stand as high as possible to prevent this from happening.





Feet





The tortoise's hind limbs differ markedly from the forelimbs. Whereas the hind limbs are elephantine, the forelimbs are flattened with well-developed muscle. They are used for digging burrows. The females use their hind limbs to dig their nests.





Behavior








Fighting may occur at anytime that males encounter one another and usually ends in the subordinate male running away from the other. Where there are cavities in partially consolidated gravels with room for several tortoises, males and females will share theses cover sites. The males may begin to fight upon emerging each day but the importance of adequate cover for protection against extreme heat seems to be greater than maintaining the dominance hierarchy.





To maximize the utilization of infrequent rainfall, tortoises dig catchment basins in the soil, remember where these are, and may be found waiting by them when rain appears imminent. Water that reaches the bladder is not lost to the system but can be drawn upon as needed.





Much of the tortoise’s water intake comes from moisture in the grasses and wildflowers they consume in the spring. During very dry times they may give off waste as a white paste rather than a watery urine. Adult tortoises may survive a year or more without access to water.





Habitat





Desert tortoises inhabit semi-arid grasslands, gravelly desert washes, canyon bottoms and rocky hillsides below 3,530 ft.





Tortoises north and west of the Colorado River inhabit valleys and on alluvial fans. In the Sonoran Desert of Arizona, however, the tortoises tend to live on steep, rocky hillside slopes in Palo Verde and Saguaro Cactus communities.





Food %26amp; Hunting





Diet composition varies throughout the tortoise's range. If winter rainfall has been sufficient to result in germination of annuals, these are used heavily when the tortoises emerge from winter torpor (brumation). Other herbs, grasses, some shrubs and the new growth of cacti and their flowers comprise a major portion of the diet. If there is summer rain, tortoises will utilize dry forage.





Breeding





Courting and copulation may occur at any time that the tortoises are above ground; however, there seems to be more of this behavior in late summer and early fall when the testosterone levels peak in males. Females store sperm and egg laying occurs May, June and July.





The number of eggs varies. Female size seems to be one factor. A mature female might lay 4-8 white, hard-shelled eggs in a clutch and produce 2, sometimes 3 clutches in a season. Hatchlings from only a few eggs out of every hundred actually make it to adulthood.





Nests are often dug near the burrow opening early in the season and farther inside, late in the season. Some nests are dug away from the burrow but usually under a shrub. After laying, the female leaves the nest and the soil temperatures support growth of the embryos. Incubation periods of 90 to 120 days are typical. Data from experiments using controlled incubation temperatures show that cooler temperatures, 79-87 degrees F. produce all males; at 88-91 degrees F. all females.




















Tortoises grow at varying rates depending upon forage availability. The number of growth rings in a given year may be zero to several; hence, one cannot determine a tortoise s exact age by counting those rings. Sexual maturity is a function of size rather than age, approximately 7-8 inches mid- carapace length in females. Generally, Desert Tortoises don't reach sexual maturity for 15 to 20 years.





Conservation





Ravens, Gila Monsters, Kit Foxes, Badgers, Roadrunners and Coyotes are all natural predators of the Desert Tortoise. They prey on juveniles, which are 2-3 inches long with a thin, delicate shell.





In recent years Desert Tortoise of the Mojave Desert is federally listed as a threatened species. State and federal wildlife and land management agencies and local jurisdictions are actively involved in conservation programs to help the recovery of the Desert Tortoise throughout the Mojave Desert.





Primary threats remaining to the Desert Tortoises include





Illegal collection and vandalism by humans


Urban area expansion that has destroyed habitat and increased the numbers of Ravens


Upper respiratory tract disease


The loss of forage plants due to competition with grazing livestock and replacement by invasive species.





Cautions


It is unlawful to touch, harm, harass or collect a wild Desert Tortoise. There are programs run by tortoise clubs in Arizona, California and Nevada through which legally acquired captives may be adopted.











-- Betty Burge


-- A.R Royo





The Desert Tortoise - The first popular book on the Southwest's most beloved animal. Answers all questions commonly asked including longevity, reproduction, and where found.





For children The Tortoise and The Jackrabbit book + 2 stuffed animals


Click Here
Reply:- First of all you must poses a pair of mature turtles from the sexual point of view. This means the male turtle must be about 3 years old and the female turtle around 5 years old. You should try to breed only healthy animals.





- Usually turtle breeding starts somewhere in the fall. It's good for your turtles to winter cool them when you decide to breed them. The period that is recommended for this cooling process is January and February. This process should be six to eight weeks long. the idea is to keep a the turtles at a 50-60F degrees temperature buy turning of all the heating. In general cases the turtles will eat very little during this cooling period. Then another important step in the turtle breeding is leaving your turtles alone without disturbing them. After the 6-8 weeks of cooling turn on the heaters to normal temperatures.





- During the turtle breeding period make sure that your turtles are well fed. This is very important for a successful breeding. The female turtle must be in a great shape, well fed and with al the vitamins that she needs. So be sure that she has all the calcium and D3 vitamin that she needs.





- The best thing for your turtle breeding would be to take place somewhere outdoor. It's much easier for them. if you can't provide them an outside location it's not such a big problem but even indoor or outdoor you will have give them a nesting area.





- The nesting are should be some kind of box with 12-16 inches deep of moist soil or sand. The majority of water turtles lay multiple clutches per summer. Every clutch has from 2 to 10 eggs. The turtle will lay for about 24-48 hours for every clutch. The time intervals between the clutches are a few weeks long.





- After the laying remove the eggs. Remember that you mustn't turn over the eggs. I suggest you to make a mark on the top of the eggs so you wont risk to put them in a wrong position.





- The next step in the turtle breeding process is the icubation. First of all you'll have to make an incubation box. The box must contain moistened Vermiculate. The vermiculate it's not hard to find. I think that you can get vermiculate from any garden centers in your neighborhood. Then creafuly insert the eggs in some little hole that you will make them in the moisten vermiculate. It is possible for some eggs to stick together and it's not bad to try to separate them. But be gentle. If the separation is not easy the do not force. Live them be.





- The hatching lasts 60-120 days. In this perios you must kepp the box seald. Do noy forget to make some airholes in the box. Do not let the in the box anf forget about them. You have to check them weekly or more often but not daily. And alwasy keep an ey on the teperature. You should keep it at about 82F. When you see that the Vermiculate gets dry, spray carefuly with water to keep it moisten.





- After the baby turtles hatch you must keep them separated from the adults. You should feed thyem diet food once a day. The baby turtles are carnivorous, but i advise you to give the fruits and vegetables.





In conclusion the turtle breeding procces it's not so simple, because teher are many factors that must be taken in consideration. But if you fallow my instrucyions exactly you should manage to breed your turtles corectly. If you aren't sure enough of what you have to doo there are many turtle breeding books that you can consul





Hope this helps.....



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