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- Jul 23, 2008
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There has been questions on cherryheads and what size they really become sexually mature. Some say it depends on the size of the tort or whether the tort is exhibiting sexual behavior. I think it depends on the size of the female's anal opening. Boys will be boys and may be precocious at a small size, but there is no harm in allowing juvenile males to learn the ropes early on a mature female.
I believe that the danger arises more for the females. The anal opening is where the eggs will come out of and likewise should be wide enough to accommodate a ping pong sized egg. If the anal opening is too small, there is a risk that the tort will become egg bound and may die.
Again it is my opinion that sexual maturity is not based on size. For example, I have a XL female that is 1/8" shy of 11" and a smaller female at 9 1/4". As you can see the smaller female's anal openings is way larger than the XL female. The XL female has not been exposed to any males to date since her anal opening has not been large enough to safely pass an egg. The smaller female has been in our breeding program for the last three years, her anal opening was large enough when she was about 8 1/4". Here are the pics of the two of them next to each other so you can see the SCL and anal scute size differences.
Another example of where shell size is not a good indicator of sexual maturity is two of our smaller torts. They are about 9 1/4" and 8 1/4". The larger one has had three clutches to date. The smaller one is way too small to pass any eggs based on the size of the anal opening.
PS
There does seem to be a range for the cherryheads in terms of size. There are some females that grow quickly in size but take longer to reach sexual maturity and others that mature at a small size. Cherryheads come in all different shapes, sizes and colors. This lends to the theory that there are a "subspecies" within the cherryhead. But that is for another discussion.
I believe that the danger arises more for the females. The anal opening is where the eggs will come out of and likewise should be wide enough to accommodate a ping pong sized egg. If the anal opening is too small, there is a risk that the tort will become egg bound and may die.
Again it is my opinion that sexual maturity is not based on size. For example, I have a XL female that is 1/8" shy of 11" and a smaller female at 9 1/4". As you can see the smaller female's anal openings is way larger than the XL female. The XL female has not been exposed to any males to date since her anal opening has not been large enough to safely pass an egg. The smaller female has been in our breeding program for the last three years, her anal opening was large enough when she was about 8 1/4". Here are the pics of the two of them next to each other so you can see the SCL and anal scute size differences.
Another example of where shell size is not a good indicator of sexual maturity is two of our smaller torts. They are about 9 1/4" and 8 1/4". The larger one has had three clutches to date. The smaller one is way too small to pass any eggs based on the size of the anal opening.
PS
There does seem to be a range for the cherryheads in terms of size. There are some females that grow quickly in size but take longer to reach sexual maturity and others that mature at a small size. Cherryheads come in all different shapes, sizes and colors. This lends to the theory that there are a "subspecies" within the cherryhead. But that is for another discussion.