I've got eggs! Woooo!

[travisgn]

My russian, Calypso, laid her eggs today! Just two. They are safely inside the incubator. Now for another long wait.

Sorry, I know everybody loves pictures, but I think you all know what an egg looks like.

Am I correct in my understanding that she could still lay additional clutches this season? Does mating have to occur for that to happen or will she just produce more?

Travis

 

[egyptiandan]

Congratulations

Yes she probably will lay additional clutches

Danny

 

[dmmj]

congratz, I will keep my fingers crossed

 

[BuffsTorts]

What sort of population is she part of?
I dream of eggs, however need to wait a year or two to let my small girl catch up to my male, so I can have a 1.2 group.

 

[travisgn]

Just a pair. I bought them together. They are now split up due to over aggression. I hope to get another female or two for next season, though.

 

[DoctorCosmonaut]

Congrats!

 

[TortieGal]

Awesome! We must have pictures when the babies hatch.

 

[GBtortoises]

Your female can definitely produce 1 or 2 more clutches of eggs this season without being bred again. Typically clutches will be produced anywhere from 21-45 days after the previous one. If you haven't already check out www.russiantortoise.org for more information on Russian tortoises, breeding, nesting and incubation.

 

[travisgn]

I do have that website bookmarked and I refer to it from time to time, but it isn't comprehensive.

There was still some info I couldn't seem to find anywhere, such as time between clutches and whether the female would need to mate again, etc. So thanks very much for the info!

I also found a great difference of opinion in how to set up the incubator. I did basically everything russiantortoise.org suggested, though it didn't say anything about humidity levels. I've read everything from keep the humidity between 70-80%, to keep it much lower at 55-60%, to just put a dish of water in there and don't worry about it. It seems that a higher humidity is an inevitability for me, anyway. I started with a large bowl of water, swapped it for a smaller bowl when the humidity climbed quite high (just over 80%), eventually took the bowl out completely to try to bring it down some (which it didn't), then got worried about not having water in there so I put the small bowl back in. Then there is always the possibility that my hygrometer just isn't that accurate. I bought a combo digital therm/hygro specifically for this, and it seems to measure about the same as my analog combo...

Anyway, I'm rambling, so I'll sign off for now.

Travis

 

[85hardy]

Very coo. I hope to see pics of the hatchlings in the future.

 

[Eighttrack]

How cool. Hope all goes well and we see pics soon.