The End Of Pyramiding

[Tom]

Update:
Tuck.

Tulee.

Trey.

All are doing well. Eating, sunning and soaking daily. Humidity in their tank is staying in the high 80's. They also get sprayed several times a day.

 

[latshki]

Tom, when is the time that they hatch in the wild? is it the month or two before the rainy season
I think you have something here and it all seems to make perfect sense lol
if I ever get some sulcatas they will be following your end of pyramiding care given here

 

[Tom]

Tom, when is the time that they hatch in the wild? is it the month or two before the rainy season
I think you have something here and it all seems to make perfect sense lol
if I ever get some sulcatas they will be following your end of pyramiding care given here

Honestly, I don't know, but I'll make an educated guess. I would think they'd hatch in the Spring time, which would be October, November for the Southern Hemisphere. Hopefully someone more knowledgeable will correct me if I'm wrong. I'm going to be trying these techniques, or something similar, with some other species too, in the not too distant future.

 

[Yvonne G]

I once had a female sulcata here who laid three or four clutches throughout the year...summer, winter, spring...didn't matter to her. And I believe, if left alone, the eggs would hatch in three or four months from the date they were laid, depending upon the heat of the earth. So in winter, they probably wouldn't hatch at all, but the rest of the year I don't think it matters if its rainy or not, they just hatch when they've matured.

 

[Tom]

I once had a female sulcata here who laid three or four clutches throughout the year...summer, winter, spring...didn't matter to her. And I believe, if left alone, the eggs would hatch in three or four months from the date they were laid, depending upon the heat of the earth. So in winter, they probably wouldn't hatch at all, but the rest of the year I don't think it matters if its rainy or not, they just hatch when they've matured.

I've seen the same thing in captivity. Its fairly common to get 3-5 clutches of 15-20 eggs a year, at anytime of year. Most, but not all, people who breeds sulcatas tell me they lay about once a month during the warmer months. Others tell me its just random and they do it whenever they feel like it. My female has chosen January as her time to lay, which makes her babies hatch out just as the weather is really warming up. She been living outside, full time for around 7 years now, so she should be pretty well programmed for the seasons in our area here.

 

[Tom]

Update: Steadily growing. Smoothly.

Tuck:

Tulee: She's a little piggy. So far growing the fastest.

Trey: Two weeks late, but catching up.

Some side view beauty shots:

 

[DeanS]

WOW! They're as flawless as they are CUTE

 

[Cameron]

awesome Tom. i'm getting a new hatchling sully this week, i'm definitely gonna try the misting/higher humidity thing too. keep us updated!

 

[ChiKat]

WOW those new pictures are incredible!!! I can't believe the smooth growth- flawless!
I'm really looking forward to watching them grow! Thanks for posting regular updates!!

 

[Cameron]

Also I have heard Russ Gurley mention lack of humidity having a lot to do with pyramiding. I'm really hoping you can help to add credibility to this theory.

 

[Tom]

WOW those new pictures are incredible!!! I can't believe the smooth growth- flawless!
I'm really looking forward to watching them grow! Thanks for posting regular updates!!

Thanks Katie. They've been out of the egg for more than a month now and they still look great. I'm already farther ahead than I've ever been. Usually they are already starting to get bumpy by the end of the first month. (I mean my hatchlings always did in the past.) 90 days is my real benchmark. Its sort of arbitrary, but that's when I got Daisy, my 3 year old, and she was already pretty badly pyramided. I'm going to post comparison pics of her and these three when they hit 90 days.

---

Also I have heard Russ Gurley mention lack of humidity having a lot to do with pyramiding. I'm really hoping you can help to add credibility to this theory.

Funny. Most people want to meet Tom Hanks or Wil Smith. I couldn't care less about the movie stars. I want to meet Russ Gurley, Richard Fife, Yvonne, Maggie and a few others like them. Oh, the brain picking I could do...

I just learned about a new guy today. He's a bit of a recluse. Doesn't want anyone to call him or know his name. I know several of his friends and I'm contacting him through them. I doubt I'll ever get to see his place or meet him, but the man knows some stuff about tortoises. He's got a herd of about 20 Gpp and he's figured out some stuff. He was having nothing but trouble getting them to incubate. Very little success.

One day his kid says, "hey dad, look at that baby tortoise over there." Sure enough he hunted around and found a hole in the ground with Gpp hatchlings streaming out of it. He incubates them all "naturally" in the ground now. 18 month incubation time. Apparently, they lay during the cooler months and there is a long diapause. This makes sense as the climate over there in SA is nearly the same as it is here in SoCal. He says the females are very meticulous about covering their tracks. He just sits and watches them all day and marks the nests. He says if you didn't see them laying, you wouldn't know there was a nest.

Sorry. Very off topic. But I find it very interesting.

 

[Cameron]

Also I have heard Russ Gurley mention lack of humidity having a lot to do with pyramiding. I'm really hoping you can help to add credibility to this theory.

Funny. Most people want to meet Tom Hanks or Wil Smith. I couldn't care less about the movie stars. I want to meet Russ Gurley, Richard Fife, Yvonne, Maggie and a few others like them. Oh, the brain picking I could do...

I just learned about a new guy today. He's a bit of a recluse. Doesn't want anyone to call him or know his name. I know several of his friends and I'm contacting him through them. I doubt I'll ever get to see his place or meet him, but the man knows some stuff about tortoises. He's got a herd of about 20 Gpp and he's figured out some stuff. He was having nothing but trouble getting them to incubate. Very little success.

One day his kid says, "hey dad, look at that baby tortoise over there." Sure enough he hunted around and found a hole in the ground with Gpp hatchlings streaming out of it. He incubates them all "naturally" in the ground now. 18 month incubation time. Apparently, they lay during the cooler months and there is a long diapause. This makes sense as the climate over there in SA is nearly the same as it is here in SoCal. He says the females are very meticulous about covering their tracks. He just sits and watches them all day and marks the nests. He says if you didn't see them laying, you wouldn't know there was a nest.

Sorry. Very off topic. But I find it very interesting.

It's easy for me, he is the president of the Okc Herp Society, so he does tortoise presentations for us a few times a year.

Also, i can't for the life of me figure out GPP. Galapagos??

 

[Annieski]

Wow, Tom, "the Babies" look fantastic! I'm curious--- what are they eating and do you notice if they have a preference for one thing over another or amount?

 

[Seiryu]

Also, i can't for the life of me figure out GPP. Galapagos??

I think Gpp = Geochelone Pardalis, Pardalis (Leopard tortoise).

 

[Cameron]

Also, i can't for the life of me figure out GPP. Galapagos??

I think Gpp = Geochelone Pardalis, Pardalis (Leopard tortoise).

Thanks! Acronyms can be tough!

 

[Tom]

Wow, Tom, "the Babies" look fantastic! I'm curious--- what are they eating and do you notice if they have a preference for one thing over another or amount?

They are eating a little of all the good stuff. The rose leaves have to be small, soft new growth. I give them different colored flower petals mixed in with the food sometimes, but they just seem to munch on everything equally. They didn't care much for the kale, but ate it anyway since that's all they got that day. Same with mustard greens. They love the mallow and mulberry leaves. The opuntia becomes a slimy mess by the time I chop it finely enough, but they still ate it. They seem to eat quite a bit for three tiny little babies. Interestingly, their appetite seems to really pick up in their sunning cage too. I've always said natural sunshine is a reptile "supercharger".

 

[spikethebest]

i just love the pics!!!! cant wait to see them in person sometime soon. your doing a great job.

 

[danielledelynn]

Tuck, Tulee & Trey....that may possibly be the most adorable set of names for a triplet tortie family that I've ever heard!!! They are all beautiful and look smoother than a baby's bottom! Thanks for the update & pics Tom

 

[Paige Lewis]

I have found this so interesting to follow, when i first got my tort he was already pyramiding at 3 months, he was on a weed diet from the start of me having him with supplements yet his growth didn't at first seem to change its pattern, i then increased the humidity (as i joined this forum and began reading about it) in his enclosure and started spraying him and his growth over the past few months has begun smoothing out.

 

[Tom]

I have found this so interesting to follow, when i first got my tort he was already pyramiding at 3 months, he was on a weed diet from the start of me having him with supplements yet his growth didn't at first seem to change its pattern, i then increased the humidity (as i joined this forum and began reading about it) in his enclosure and started spraying him and his growth over the past few months has begun smoothing out.

This is nearly the same story as my Daisy tortoise. Although, its taken me nearly three years to be able to say the new growth is now coming in smooth.