Fantastic, amazing, unbelievable !
Congratulations !!!
Congratulations !!!
Faery said:While I don't know the specifics regarding tortoises I can try to address the questions about why their markings are not identical:
They should all have the same genetic make-up (inferred from yolk sharing), however how the cells migrate within the body can be independent from the genetics. Another possibility is differences in how the colors are 'activated' - I'll have to do more research on this to get a clear picture. I'm better with mammals... That said, you would find the same thing to be true if you cloned your cat or dog: The genes would all be the same, but the markings still wouldn't be the same. An example in humans would be identical twins' fingerprints. Fingerprints are always unique to an individual.
I could go into more detail on this but I don't want to bore everyone...!