Reproduction of the pig-nosed turtle Carettochelys insculpta
(RAMSAY, 1886) at the
Rotterdam Zoo. Radiata 14(3):3-12.
Gerard Visser & Henk Zwartepoorte
Hatchling husbandry
All hatchlings were initially housed separately in small plastic containers measuring 30 x 17 x 15 cm, in
7 cm of water. Some floating plastic plants were provided for cover. Water temperature was kept at 26 to
28 °C, air temperature at 28 °C. After three days the hatchlings were fed with mosquito larvae,
aquatic plants, zoomade gel-food, Tetramina, floating plants. Most food items were taken readily, but the
fact that the mosquito larvae were layer of sand. After moving into this aquarium the hatchlings directly
buried themselves into the sand with just the top parts of the carapace and their heads above the sand.
The water temperature is kept at a constant 28 °C.
After three days the hatchlings were fed with mosquito larvae, aquatic plants, zoomade gel-food, Tetramina,
floating plants. Most food items were taken readily, but the fact that the mosquito larvae were refused may
indicate that the hatchlings are herbivorous initially. At the age of one month, some hatchlings started to
feed on smaller earthworms.
Eight hatchlings were measured and weighed after one to two days (see Table 2)
Three weeks after birth, the first eight hatchlings were housed together in a 150 x 75 cm aquarium with a
water level of approximately 12 cm. The decoration consisted of some stones, aquatic plants and artificial
plants for shelter. The bottom was covered with a few centimetres thick layer of sand. After moving into
this aquarium the hatchlings directly buried themselves into the sand with just the top parts of the
carapace and their heads above the sand. The water temperature is kept at a constant 28 °C.
| Hatchling No. | Weight (g) | Carapace Length (mm) | Date |
| 1 | 30.0 | 58.0 | 04/13/2005 |
| 2 | 31.3 | 55.5 | 04/13/2005 |
| 3 | 27.1 | 54.5 | 04/13/2005 |
| 4 | 24.7 | 55.7 | 04/13/2005 |
| 5 | 29.0 | 58.8 | 04/13/2005 |
| 6 | 26.7 | 53.3 | 04/13/2005 |
| 7 | 19.1 | 50.5 | 04/13/2005 |
| 8 | 24.0 | 54.4 | 04/17/2005 |
Conclusions
It is indeed possible to breed Carettochelys insculpta in captivity. All three known breeding
events happened with animals that had spent a long time in captivity. Aggression between the animals and
consequent female carapace damage is related to reproductive behaviour. As was to be expected, the eggs
hatched after being submerged in warm water, but also eggs that were not submersed hatched in the
incubator.
The problem seems to be how to offer suitable nesting beaches that the females will indeed use and this
may now be the single-most important factor to concentrate on for improving subsequent breeding conditions.
These beaches should probably resemble the specifics of the natural situation better, the details of which
may not be sufficiently known to animal managers outside of the natural range of the species.
In Rotterdam, this will be the focus of attention for the next breeding seasons.
Additional data
During preparation of this manuscript, one egg that we had been able to salvage from the bottom of the
aquarium and that was produced by our second female, hatched on May 27, 2005.
This egg hatched in the incubator and the incubation period at 31 OC was 106 days. This is the fifth case
of breeding that is known to the authors.
Acknowledgements
The authors wish to thank all reptile keepers at Rotterdam Zoo that have been talung care of our pig-nosed
turtles over many years.
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