Not posted for a while

[Zoeclare]

Been away for a bit.
Here's a recent photo of Nitro. Getting on for 9 inches now

 

[Yvonne G]

He's a beauty!

 

[wellington]

I agree, great coloring.

 

[ZEROPILOT]

He's truly special.
He's got Box Turtle camouflage

 

[Melaleuca]

Beautiful! How old is Nitro? His marbling is really cool, do you know around what age he stopped marbling and the black became dominant?

 

[Zoeclare]

Beautiful! How old is Nitro? His marbling is really cool, do you know around what age he stopped marbling and the black became dominant?

Hi! Nitro is 4 now I think. I did have a hatch date date but I didn't make a note of it, I wish I had now! So, in regards to the marbling, when he was a hatchling he had barely any at all, then it just went crazy, it looked way more prominent when he had really light growth lines in his first couple of years, I have a couple of posts about it on this forum but I'm not tech savvy enough to link them. I think that the fact he lives in the UK so had mostly LED and UV bulbs for the first few years, because it was hard to get optimal weather conditions for a young baby to be outside a lot probably meant he stayed lighter for longer. Now he's a bit bigger and more robust he gets more outside playtime and I've definitely noticed he's gotten darker since then so maybe proper sunlight is a factor?

 

[Zoeclare]

So once a month Nitro has a pamper day, which means I check his weight and measurements, he has a shell shine and a good brush with a soft baby toothbrush and a general check. I never pet him, I treat him as a wild creature that shares my space. Today though, I had him on the sofa after weighing him, ready to give him his shell buff, and he actually came over and interacted with me! Very cool!

 

[Melaleuca]

Hi! Nitro is 4 now I think. I did have a hatch date date but I didn't make a note of it, I wish I had now! So, in regards to the marbling, when he was a hatchling he had barely any at all, then it just went crazy, it looked way more prominent when he had really light growth lines in his first couple of years, I have a couple of posts about it on this forum but I'm not tech savvy enough to link them. I think that the fact he lives in the UK so had mostly LED and UV bulbs for the first few years, because it was hard to get optimal weather conditions for a young baby to be outside a lot probably meant he stayed lighter for longer. Now he's a bit bigger and more robust he gets more outside playtime and I've definitely noticed he's gotten darker since then so maybe proper sunlight is a factor?

Thanks! I have an approx. 2 year old cherryhead which a year ago had a speck of marbling and has since made marbling their whole personality It will be interesting to see the age when marbling no longer develops in the new growth. My cherryhead is also pretty antisocial (and easily stressed) compared to my redfoot.

 

[jsheffield - In Memoriam]

What a lovely tortoise!

J