Eggs at Last! Marginated Tortoises

Finally! Back about eight years ago I bought five hatchling marginated tortoises from Mark and Kim Bell.

They were pretty babies, and since first seeing this taxon about 40 years ago at Arsene Eglis' facility, I had always intended to work with them (a 40-year hiatus between the initial decision and the actuality isn't too bad, is it?).

The babies thrived, growing quickly, and it took only a three years before I was able tio determine the genders -- four males and one female (4.1 in herp parlance).

Fast forward to 2012. The tortoises were now each a bit over a foot in length. I had placed two males in new homes, retaining the biggest and most boisterous for what I hoped would become a mini-breeding program. The possibility that this would become fact was shown when in late 2012 the female laid her first eggs. The clutch was small and the eggs were infertile.

But then a year later, in September of 2013, again the female began searching for a nesting spot.

Once finding a suitable spot, the nesting was fast and 10 eggs were laid.

Now for the long wait!

Author, photographer, and columnist Richard Bartlett is one of the most prolific writers on herpetological subjects in the 20th century. With hundreds of books and articles to their credit, Richard and his wife Pat have spent over four decades documenting reptiles both in the field and in captivity. For a list of their current titles, please visit their page in our bookstore.