Pedigree, habitats and behavior in the wild, breeding of Indian stellate turtle, appearance of parareptile, maintenance and care, diseases, price. Well, who does not know such a representative of the world fauna as a turtle? Already many years ago, these cute creatures have become very popular and in demand as pets, people began to en masse, both land turtles and those who live in the aquarium.
If you also dream of such an unusual pet, but at the same time want to bring someone completely extraordinary to your house, then you should turn your attention to the Indian star turtle. It is safe to say that if you are a fan of the turtle world, then it will forever win your heart.
In addition to its bright, memorable appearance, this pet is good because caring for it does not require any special skills and abilities, in order to feed such a seemingly exotic pupil, you do not need to have a lot of money or a store with turtle delicacies around the corner. In addition, this Indian star-shaped beauty in a shell is distinguished by her friendliness and peacefulness. She rarely shows aggression, usually quickly enough adapts not only to new, hitherto unknown living conditions, but also to her owner. If you plan to buy another individual of this species for your pet in the future, then you can be calm, she also treats her neighbors very peacefully.
Therefore, if the thought flashed in your bright head that this is exactly the lesser friend whom you have been looking for for so long, then you can be sure that you will hardly regret ever acquiring such a friend.
But no matter how good and peaceful the turtle is, we must not forget that this animal comes from the wild, so before looking for it in all nearby pet stores, it is better to get to know it a little closer.
Range and origin of the Indian star turtle
According to many scientific sources, turtles are one of the most ancient parareptiles that have survived to this day, bravely surviving all catastrophes and many other trials, as a result of which our large planet Earth has lost many species of plants and a wide variety of animals.
Many scientists have been studying turtles since ancient times, discovering new species and researching interesting facts about these amazing living creatures, and in the distant 1795 a new, hitherto unknown species was discovered - the Indian star turtle. Zoologists have classified it into the class of reptiles, the order of the tortoise, the suborder of the latent-neck turtles, and the family and genus of land turtles.
Based on its name, it already seems possible to guess about the homeland of this reptile. And this is true, but besides the lands of India, this creature inhabits a rather large territory of Pakistan, namely its southeastern part, Sri Lanka and many islands, are located nearby.
This turtle with an original appearance in its natural habitat prefers to hide from all its neighbors in the thick of forests, which are protected from all sides by a large amount of shrubbery. Such a miracle of nature chooses forest areas with slightly low air humidity.
The behavior of the Indian star turtle in open nature
The period of activity of this latent collar falls on the daytime, but in the midst of daylight hours, when the sun mercilessly scatters its scorching rays, the turtle prefers to lie down in some shaded corner of the forest. Sometimes, climbing deep into the rhizomes of trees and shrubs, they wrap themselves in the thickness of the forest floor, or sometimes these creatures can, on not entirely legal grounds, make their way into holes built by other animals. In search of food products or simply for a walk, the star-shaped beauty goes either early in the morning or already in the late afternoon.
This reptile with a house on its back shows the greatest activity and mobility during a more humid period, if there is a long period of drought in the territories inhabited by a turtle, then it can easily go into hibernation.
The diet of this star-shaped native of India consists mainly of plant products, but if fortune turns to face her and she gets the opportunity to devour some small tasty animal, she will under no circumstances refuse. It is not a big secret for anyone that animals such as turtles are not famous for their speed of movement, and this species is no exception. Due to its rather slow lifestyle, this reptile feeds mainly on what grows at a low altitude, which it can reach. Such food can be flowers, grass, and if you are lucky - fallen fruits and other fruits. But with its inherent speed and agility, it is unlikely that she will be able to boast of live prey.
Continuation of the genus of star turtle
The puberty process in beautiful turtles continues until about the age of 10-14 years. The fact that the animal already has the ability to fully reproduce can be judged by the length of the dorsal part of the shell, it should be approximately 24-31 cm. In the male half of the turtle family, sexual maturity occurs much earlier, at the age of about 3-6 years and with a carapace 18-25 cm long.
The beginning of the mating season for these living creatures with a house begins with the debut of the rainy season, usually from the end of May and lasts until mid-October. Female turtles lay several clutches, in one such clutch usually from 3 to 8 eggs. The incubation period lasts approximately 50 to 150 days. After this time period, small turtles are born, in which no characteristic features are observed on the shell.
Science has described two types of coloring for baby turtles. In some, the basic tone is orange, on it you can easily see a wide strip of yellowish color, which is located longitudinally along the spinal column. In another type of babies, their "house on the back" is painted in a rich yellow color and there is no longitudinal line, but their nature also did not deprive them of decorations. In the projection of the back, several elements are drawn that have an irregular shape, these patterns are painted in dark shades, closer to black. Exactly the same ornament can be seen on the sides of the little body of the turtle.
Characteristic features of the star turtle
This representative of the large animal kingdom cannot boast of particularly large body dimensions, usually its body length grows no more than 25-30 cm. Sexual dimorphism in size is expressed quite well, the males of the Indian stellate tortoise are much smaller than the fairer sex, the length of their shell is not exceeds 13-16 cm.
Perhaps the greatest attraction of these natives of the family of land turtles is their shell, which is very remarkable and beautiful, both in shape and in the pattern on it. On the surface of this natural structure, a very extraordinary pattern is visible, which in its shape very much resembles a real star with rays emanating from it. This ornament, painted with the brush of Mother Nature herself, is painted in yellow tones and is absent only on the marginal carapace shields. Probably, it is thanks to this natural decoration that this parareptilia got its name.
The main tone of the color of the carapace of this latent-neck is dark brown or deep black. Such a seemingly insignificant color is very helpful for reptiles to survive in the harsh environmental conditions, since with its help they perfectly camouflage themselves in the rubble of dry grass or shrub vegetation.
Keeping the stellate land turtle
Probably, for every living creature living on our planet, one of the most important attributes for a happy and comfortable life is having their own roof over their heads, also for pets, even if it is a land turtle. In principle, a pet like this miracle in a shell can feel very comfortable living in a spacious box. But is it right? After all, the life expectancy of this comrade is over 50 years, then, probably, it would be better to spend once on a more comfortable and suitable home for your pet.
As his personal house, a spacious horizontal terrarium is well suited, the height of which is not so important, because its inhabitant is rather short, and will not climb trees and shelves. The main thing is that other inhabitants of your house from the animal world do not get to it.
Correct temperature conditions. For the reason that this Indian turtle is accustomed to living in rather hot climatic conditions, then your task will be to recreate as much as possible its usual microclimate in captivity. To do this, a source of artificial heating must be installed in the terrarium. As the latter, you can use both ordinary incandescent lamps and thermal cords or thermal mats, they are currently sold in any pet store. In the daytime, the thermometer should not fall below 27-28 degrees, at night the temperature should fluctuate from 22 to 25 degrees.
There is one golden rule with regard to the star turtle: "The higher the temperature in the cage, the higher the humidity should be." Under no circumstances should the temperature drop with a simultaneous increase in humidity, this action is very destructive for your pet. The correct air humidity must be maintained by daily spraying of the terrarium, but it would be nice to install special devices that will independently regulate the conditions necessary for your pet.
An ultraviolet lamp will be a necessary attribute in the personal room of your comrade with a house on his back; it will provide your friend with the necessary amount of ultraviolet rays, which in turn will help the fragile turtle's body, assimilate calcium and cholecalciferol. With a lack of these elements, after a while, serious health problems of your friend may begin, which can promise not only disability of the animal, but also death.
It is best to install the lamp in the same corner as the heating device, let it be a hot zone, so the reptile will choose where it is best for him at one time or another in his life.
In addition to the hot zone, you can equip a so-called wet chamber for your pupil. For the construction of the latter, you will need some kind of container with low sides, filled with moist moss, soil, or just green grass.
Water is also one of the main ingredients for the Indian Star Turtle's happiness and health. It is best to install a pond filled with clean water in a small turtle house. From there, she will drink water and, if desired, use it as a personal pool, in addition, there will be an additional source to maintain air humidity. Only when building a swimming place, it must be borne in mind that a turtle is a slow and clumsy animal, so the sides need to be made low, otherwise, if your pet even somehow can climb in there and swim, then he certainly cannot get out of there.
The flooring in the terrarium should be covered with a fairly wide layer of soil so that your turtle can burrow into it if desired, as long as the substrate is not too dusty. In one corner of the house, you can place a small amount of edible moss, for example, sphagnum.
A pet such as a turtle should be fed daily. As a main course, you can easily purchase special food for turtles in any store, your friend will never refuse it, but you can also make a homemade diet, the so-called turtle menu. By nature, these reptiles are accustomed to eating food of plant origin, so there is absolutely no need to retrain them, except that you can slightly diversify their food. Products such as apples, cabbage, carrots, pumpkin, zucchini, lettuce, dandelions and even alfalfa are welcomed on the menu of this comrade. Occasionally, you can pamper your friend with goodies like bananas, melons, watermelons, or strawberries, but you can overdo it with such goodies, causing intestinal upset in the animal.
In addition to the main dishes, your turtle should be given various vitamin and mineral complexes, especially calcium.
Serve such turtle delicacies in a shallow plate; it is recommended to grind the dishes beforehand. After finishing the meal, the trough should be removed.
Difficulties in caring for the Indian star turtle
Despite all the solidity and strong outer shell, turtles are no less susceptible to various pathological conditions than people. The following diseases are most common.
- Abscesses skin and subcutaneous tissue. The cause of this pathology in these reptiles can be trauma or infection of the animal with ticks or parasites. Treatment is exclusively surgical.
- Pneumonia and other diseases of the respiratory system. These diseases are, perhaps, the most common in the life of all turtles, they arise as a result of improper care of the pet, namely, abrupt changes in the microclimate in the terrarium or hypothermia of your smaller friend. If you notice that the parareptilia is becoming lethargic, breathing heavily and loudly, grab it and run to the veterinary clinic.
- Prolapse of the rectum or cloaca. The etiological factor of this pathology is malnutrition, which leads to long-term disorders of the motor function of the gastrointestinal tract. Either your pet constantly eats sand, which lined the floor in the terrarium, it damages the mucous membranes of the reptile's internal organs.
- Helminthiasis. There are many different types of parasites that are very fond of the turtle's body as their personal space, so from time to time it is necessary to check your pet's waste products for the presence of these pests. It is not recommended to use special medications at home without first consulting a veterinarian, but you can try alternative methods. One of them is feeding the turtle with raw grated carrots for 12-16 days, in most cases, if the worms have not yet managed to create their kingdom in your pet's body, this is more than enough.
Buying and Price of Indian Star Turtle
Buying a pet is a responsible business, especially if it is exotic living creatures, so check with the sellers that they have all the necessary documents to make sure that you are not dealing with poachers. The price for such a pet ranges from 10,000 to 40,000 rubles.
More about Indian Star Turtle maintenance and care in the following video:
