Sulcata gender

TheSulcata

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Hi,

I've read that you cannot tell a sulcatas gender until they are five years old... is that true?


Thanks!
Old Bob
 

JoesMum

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Hi,

I've read that you cannot tell a sulcatas gender until they are five years old... is that true?


Thanks!
Old Bob
Tortoises mature by size. Some grow more quickly than others and, having seen pictures of 100lb 4 year olds, on the forum today it would definitely be possible to sex some, but not all, younger than 5 years.

Don't quote me on this, but I believe Sulcatas need to be around 10-12 inches before you have a chance of sexing them.
 
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Tom

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There is no set age. Some you can tell early on and others you have to wait a while. I just recently discovered that one of my 4 year olds that I thought was female, is actually going male.

In most cases, you will be able to tell by 5 years old. In many cases, you can tell earlier than that.
 

JoesMum

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So, when they are young are they no gender? Or can you just not tell?
You can't tell.

Juvenile torts all look female to the human eye until they're near mature - there's no obvious external signs of gender unless you have a hormonal young male that decides to flash.
 

HI Tortoise Rescue

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All tortoises are born having a gender. Tortoises are long-lived, which is why they aren't in any hurry to show sexual differentiation. Box turtles seem to be an exception, as males have red eyes almost from birth. Sulcatas can generally be sexed when their plastrons are approximately 10" long. Females will have a convex plastron, while males will slowly develop as concave. Other than X-rays, it's the most accurate way of know your tortoise's gender.

Ken
 
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