manouria eating grasses( pageing Yvonne)

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biglove4bigtorts

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I have been reading as much as I can about Manouria and posting here, e-mailing with Vic Morgan (who I am purchasing my pair from in March) and reading as much as I can about boc turtle care, due to the similaritys, though I think the Manouria are just as similar, if not more so than Kinixys.

Having read what littl eis available and drawing from my experience with Kinixys and Native box turtles, I am questioning the amount and types of grasses these guy will utilize. In a forest habitat, grass would be fairly limited and only a few species represented, b/c of the decreased light levels. This would also probably dictate ''wetter'' grasses as opposed to more woodsy/fibrous types. I know that my Knixys seemed very uninterested in any grasses and preferred leafy greens and appropriate fruits, such as figs, cactus pears, winter squashed, berries, and so forth. I also included collected grape leaves, green briar, dandelion, mulberry leaves, plantain, clover, dandelion and nastrutium blossoms, chickory flowers, marigold petals, mint, and store greens, such as mustard and turnip. I also tried the forest turtle pellets, soaked and mixed with fruit and greens and they loved canned dog food that was designed for dogs with renal failure and had lower amounts of protein.

I kept boxies the same way as a child, except the dog food was omitted for adults, in favor of worms, and the hatchlings got insects to chase. The adult boxies seemed uninterested in fibrous grasses also.

Do Manouria consume large amounts of pasture type grasses, when planted in thier pens? What species do you feed most often, that they enjoy? How well formed are their feces? My kinixys usually had well formed stools, boxies formed, but messier, and I am assuming Manouria will be about the same as boxies. I am also curious as to how much more protien juvenile Manouria consume, as my boxies were nearly 100 carnivores for a few months, like bearded dragons are at first. I think, since my torts will be several months old anyway, I am going to strive for a 75% grass/weeds diet, 15% high Ca fruits and store greens, and 10% protein, with sources such as boiled eggs, veggie pasta, and the occasional insects/worms. I think the tortoises would eat more protein, but certainly won't need it and this should allow for even, healthy growth. I am sure they will get their share of worms when it rains and from rooting around anyway.
 

Yvonne G

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My Manouria don't eat grass. I will occasionally see a blade sticking out of their mouths, but on the whole, they don't eat grass. They much prefer broad-leafed plants and weeds. Mine will eat collocasia and banana trees right down to the ground, then dig up the roots or bulbs and eat them too. I have shepherd's purse, purselane, dandelion, clover, dichondra, turnips, some sort of daisy-like plant that I can't remember the name (oh yeah, gazania), and many, many more. Each spring I toss about 100 packets of different veggie seeds all over the floor of their rain forest. But they eat the plants, all the plants right down to the ground, so mostly I feed them veggies and fruits from the store. On the days when I don't feed them is when I might see them give grass a try.
 

biglove4bigtorts

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So, my hunch was correct! I suppose they are adapted to the broad leaved plants, probably eating forest floor growth, leaves from saplings, and plants that they find in clearing, where they may wander through or stop to bask. Good to know.
This means a good iguana salad, such as that fed by Melissa Kaplan would work out just fine in the case of these torts, which makes them easier to feed, if you live in the North East and can't grow food all year round....grocery stores always have mustard, collards, turnip, dandelion, parsnips, winter squash, and some fruit. Purslane is a very good choice plants for the torts BTW. It was eaten by settlers to cure scurvy, b/c of its hight vitamin content and it grows in full sun wiht little nutrients and in the worst soils. Try portulacca/moss rose as well...these often reseed and are a favored treat for all torts.

Thanks Yvonne
 

Yvonne G

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Last summer I shortened the Leopard pen by about 1600 square feet and planted it for the Manouria. I allowed it to grow until the plants were up to my knee. By this time all the lettuces had gone to seed. When I took down the fence and allowed the Manouria in, they ate it down to the dirt in about a month...maybe less. This is what it looks like this a.m.:

rainforest-2.jpg


All the trees and bushes are just babies. There's a fig, an orange, pineapple guava, a mallow, a rose, a banana, a mock orange and a couple heavenly bamboo (toxic, but native to where the Manouria come from). There are also about 5 baby rose of Sharon. The plant that I thought was Shepherd's Purse, isn't. I GOOGLED that and it shows a different flower than mine. This plant has grey undersides with a yellow flower :

rainforest-3.jpg




Here you can see plants coming back from seed...yarrow, plantain, dichondra, clover, lettuce and turnip:

rainforest-4.jpg


rainforest-5.jpg


When it stops raining I'm going to block off the fence again to give the plants a better shot of growing.
 
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