How to Keep Chinese Pond Turtles? Breeding Methods and Precautions

How to Keep Chinese Pond Turtles? The Chinese pond turtle, commonly known as the turtle, is the most widely distributed and most numerous species among the turtle species in China. Every part of it is treasured, and it is regarded in the Shennong Bencao Jing and Bencao Gangmu as a top-grade food and medicinal tonic. Let us take a look below at how to keep Chinese pond turtles!

Physical Characteristics

The body of the Chinese pond turtle is elongated and oval, with a slightly raised carapace bearing 3 longitudinal ridges, the vertebral keel being distinct. The top of the head is dark olive, the front part of the skin smooth, and the rear part covered with fine scales. The plastron is flat, with a notch at the posterior end. The neck, limbs and exposed skin areas are grayish-black or blackish-olive.

Males are smaller in size, have long tails, and emit an odor; at sexual maturity the carapace and plastron turn jet black, and the olive-green skin markings fade and become black.

Females have a carapace ranging from light brown to dark brown, a brownish-black plastron, a relatively short tail, and no body odor. The Chinese pond turtle has strong adaptability to the environment, relatively low requirements for water quality, and a high tolerance for poor water quality. When kept at high density, there is no phenomenon of cannibalism, and the disease rate is low.

Living Habits

1. It breathes with lungs, and its body surface bears well-developed keratinous scutes that can reduce water evaporation. Sexually mature Chinese pond turtles lay their eggs on land and do not need to go through a fully aquatic stage.

2. Omnivorous; in nature, animal feed mainly consists of worms, small fish, shrimp, river snails, mussels, clams, earthworms, as well as animal carcasses and internal organs, hot pig blood, etc.; plant feed mainly consists of plant stems and leaves, melon and fruit peels, wheat bran, etc.

3. It lives in groups in burrows; sometimes, due to excessive group living, the carapace is worn smooth and the limbs are worn raw, yet they still do not disperse.

4. Shell shedding is an extremely rare phenomenon in nature and may also be an abnormal biological phenomenon.

5. At what temperature does the Chinese pond turtle grow fastest? Adult turtles and hatchling turtles were each kept for 30 days under five temperature groups: 23°C, 26°C, 29°C, 32°C and 35°C. The results showed that: adult turtles (male) gained weight noticeably at 23°C-26°C, growing fastest at 23°C, second fastest at 26°C, and worst at 35°C. Adult turtles (female) gained weight noticeably at 23°C-29°C, growing fastest at 23°C, second fastest at 29°C, and worst at 35°C. Under the same temperature of 23°C and identical feed conditions, female turtles grew 34.2% faster than male turtles. Hatchling turtles grew fastest at 26°C, second fastest at 29°C, and worst at 35°C.

Natural Enemies

The main enemies of the Chinese pond turtle are snakes, water rats, weasels, wild cats, etc. In summer, Chinese pond turtles are often active at night, and water rats and weasels also come and go at night. Although the Chinese pond turtle has a hard shell for protection, it is still easily bitten and injured by enemies, leading to death.

In addition, when turtle eggs rot and deteriorate, they often attract large numbers of ants that endanger the eggs and hatchlings, which is greatly detrimental to turtle rearing. Therefore, attention must be paid to eliminating these enemies so that the kept Chinese pond turtles have a good ecological environment, which is conducive to their reproduction and growth.

Breeding Methods

1. Mating and Egg Laying

Female turtles weighing more than 700 grams can be used for mating and breeding, with a female-to-male ratio of 2:1. If a female turtle weighs more than 700 grams, a larger male turtle must be provided for successful mating and breeding. The suitable temperature for mating is 20—30 degrees, and mating mostly occurs on clear evenings from 5—6 o'clock, or on rainy days from 2—4 in the afternoon. The mating process generally takes only 3—5 minutes.

The egg-laying period of turtles varies from place to place. In plain water areas it generally begins at the end of May, peaks in July and August, and ends in September. One female parent turtle lays eggs 3—4 times a year, with 5 per nest each time, and 3—8 eggs per nest. Artificially reared turtles have the habit of laying eggs in groups, and sometimes many turtles may lay dozens of eggs in the same nest. Before laying, the female turtle chooses a slope with loose soil and a concealed spot beside tree roots or in weeds, and digs out a nest with a mouth about 8—10 cm in size and 9—12 cm deep. Egg laying mostly occurs at night or at dawn.

There are two methods for incubating turtle eggs: natural incubation and artificial incubation.

2. Natural Incubation

① Dig a sand pit 20—40 cm wide and 20 cm deep (length unlimited) at the sunny foot of the wall of the parent turtle pond; then fill the pit level with yellow sand, and arrange the turtle eggs in the sandy soil at a spacing of 1 cm; maintain a certain humidity, and let the sun warm it, and hatchlings will emerge in 50—60 days.

② Pile several small sand heaps around the parent turtle pond, let mature breeding turtles climb ashore at night, dig holes in the sand heaps and lay eggs, and let them hatch naturally; young turtles will emerge in about 50—70 days.

2. Artificial Incubation

Place the collected turtle eggs in a wooden box 25 cm high (length unlimited, width adapted to local conditions), drill several small holes in the bottom of the box, spread 15—20 cm of sand on the bottom, arrange the turtles in the sand, then scatter fine sand about 2 cm thick over the eggs, cover the sand with a wet towel, and maintain indoor humidity of 25—35 degrees. On dry, clear days, sprinkle water on the sand 1—2 times a day; when air humidity is relatively high, the frequency of sprinkling can be reduced. Cover the box well with a wet cloth; when the hatchlings emerge, this can prevent them from escaping, prevent enemy invasion, and prevent mosquito bites. In this way, hatchlings emerge in 50—60 days, with a hatchling rate of over 90%.