Spekes...

Kapidolo Farms

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Why are they called "hinge back"?
They have a hinged area across their back so they can close off their rear and back legs from potential depredation. Like box turtle, has a hinge on the plastron, (bottom shell) that allows them to close off both front and back.
 

Valerie0426

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They have a hinged area across their back so they can close off their rear and back legs from potential depredation. Like box turtle, has a hinge on the plastron, (bottom shell) that allows them to close off both front and back.
Thank you. Is there a picture someone may have? I am curious, I can't imagine it.
 

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serrated-hingeback-tortoise-in-shell-side-view-picture-id85009473


This tortoise has closed his hinge on both sides at the back. You can see the hinge above the rear leg.

And in this picture you can see the hinge open:

494355017-bells-hinge-back-tortoise-kinixys-belliana-gettyimages.jpg
 

juli11

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But spekes hinge backs don't have such a good hinge like K. Erosa or homeana for example.
 

juli11

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juli11

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ImageUploadedByTortoise Forum1474481323.512052.jpg

Heathy female!
The male haven't eat yet.. Maybe I'll exchange him against a real spekii male because I need spekii male more than a lobatsiana male
 

juli11

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Julian:confused:
You are going to have to explain to me the difference between a spekii and a lobatsiana.

Very very difficult to say. For me it's the shell pattern ( spekii looks yellow/ lobatsiana looks brown to red) and the head. Spekii has a smaller not so big head like lobatsiana. But there are not enough animals to make a 100% difference.
For me Kinixys spekii have subspecies. They couldn't be all the same species. And what I think it that there are hybrids between spekii and lobatsiana in the areas where both of them exist.
 

tortadise

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Very very difficult to say. For me it's the shell pattern ( spekii looks yellow/ lobatsiana looks brown to red) and the head. Spekii has a smaller not so big head like lobatsiana. But there are not enough animals to make a 100% difference.
For me Kinixys spekii have subspecies. They couldn't be all the same species. And what I think it that there are hybrids between spekii and lobatsiana in the areas where both of them exist.
Now zombensis will hybridize naturally with spekii. Lobatsiana I don't think they range over one another in Botswana. Easiest way to distinguish between most kinixys is the beak as you stated. Speki have a big bird like beak, smooth marginal posterior scutes, lobatsisiana are very serrated at the flank, and have a much different head. I suppose I should update my kinixys diversification thread. I actually identified a recent import specimen of a friend, that appears to be a hybrid between spekii and zombensis. Has both characteristics and even the shell of a zombensis but not 100%. That's one tough thing about em. A lot of em overlap in range.
 

juli11

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Yes right! The bright one is the last hatched animals and the black one the second. The first was in the middle of these two when it hatched but now it goes more and more darker.
 

juli11

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So outside season is over. Hopefully she'll lay eggs and than they go in their "hiberantion". Last year she laid around the 20.10.15. So let's see what happen.
 

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This male is absolutely difficult. He doesn't eat for 6 months I think and he was so shy I can't be in the same room. I tried everything with as food and I mean everything :D now I have to put him in a smaller enclosure because the females came inside. Since he's in the smaller enclosure he starts eating by himself. And he eats everything :D very interesting history with him. I hope he continues this behavior so that he can breed next year with the females.
 

juli11

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My second K. spekii female laid her first egg. I don't think it's fertile and if it's is fertile from K. lobatsiana.. so not the best.
But maybe you can see it the egg is huge really huge...
 

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