@ZenHerper

[Maggie3fan]

Here are pictures of a deformed 3 toed box turtle I brought back from Texas about 6 years ago, it is still the same size. I'm guessing it was already an adult when I got it. Face looks female and I've always thought it was female...All the sudden it's now trying to breed a couple of my females, but I never see a penis...It's name is Smooshbutt...it may just be a bully...it is still wild...eyes are brown no spots...

 

[ZenHerper]

Poor mite. That's quite a carapace.

Of course, dominance behavior does not have to correlate with sex, gender, or hormones. So the mounting could just be mounting...or a sign that the enclosure feels too small and populous to her (stress from perceived lack of territory and/or resources).

I find it interesting that the hind end of the carapace is so widely separated from the plastron -- what one might see when eggs are present. If this gap has not always been so great, consider that active ovaries have triggered a territorial dominance response and that she may try to lay (and may need help if she has had to cope with metabolic bone disease). If this is how she's always looked, MBD may have crushed her hind leg muscles into weird angles as the spine and shell fell in, and the two shell halves have pushed artificially apart.

Consider setting up a habitat for her alone in case she needs more privacy or wants to nest over the next 6-8 months.

 

[DoubleD1996!]

Here are pictures of a deformed 3 toed box turtle I brought back from Texas about 6 years ago, it is still the same size. I'm guessing it was already an adult when I got it. Face looks female and I've always thought it was female...All the sudden it's now trying to breed a couple of my females, but I never see a penis...It's name is Smooshbutt...it may just be a bully...it is still wild...eyes are brown no spots...View attachment 336573View attachment 336574View attachment 336575View attachment 336577View attachment 336576

Sheesh. The eyes aren't always a sure way to tell, just as coloration. Sometimes females are vibrant as well. One thing I have noticed is the back claws. As you know, box turtles...box, and the males are designed to be able to pry the females back shell open. So their back claws are kinda shaped like falcon talons while the females are more splayed out for digging.