Yellow edge box tortoise

Yellow edge box turtle (Cistoclemmysflavomarginata) is also known as broken plate turtle, sipping snake tortoise, splint turtle, yellow board turtle. The taxonomic status is turtle family, box tortoise genus, yellow edge box turtle species. It is distributed in Anhui, Henan, Macao, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Fujian, Hunan, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Guangdong, Guangxi and so on. Foreign countries are distributed in Japan.

[morphological features] the head is smooth, the front end of the kiss is flat, and the upper beak has obvious curving. The top of the head is olive and there is a yellow U-shaped arc behind the eyes. The toenail is crimson brown and high, the central ridge is obvious and yellowish, the concentric ring on each shield is clear, and the ventral side of the shield is light yellow, so it is called "yellow box tortoise". The abdominal nail is dark brown, and the ligaments are connected between the dorsal nail and the abdominal nail, and between the chest shield and the abdominal shield. The anterior and posterior edge of the abdominal nail is semicircular. The limbs are flat and scaly, with semi-webbed fingers and toes and a short tail.

[identification of male and female] the dorsal armour of the male tortoise is longer, the center of the abdominal nail is slightly concave, and the anal foramen is far from the posterior edge of the abdominal nail. The dorsal armour of the female turtle is wide, the center of the ventral nail is flat, and the anal foramen is close to the posterior edge of the ventral nail.

[living habits] Yellow margin box turtles mainly live in wet areas near water, such as rivers and lakes, and often live under fallen wood, rotten forests, rock crevices, deep caves and fallen leaves. Estrus begins in April every year, and the spawning period is from late May to September. It lays 3-4 nests of 2-10 eggs a year, and more eggs are laid in artificial culture. When the temperature drops to 10 ℃, it goes into hibernation.

[aquaculture equipment] Yellow margin box turtles live mainly on land. If raised in a pond with water and land, the water depth should not exceed twice that of the tortoise body. If raised in a walled courtyard, it shall be isolated from poultry and livestock, and turtle nests with shelter from rain and light shall be provided for roosting and spawning. A square cement pool is set up near the turtle's nest for drinking water and swimming. In addition, a feed trough or feed pool is needed.

[feeding management] this tortoise has wide distribution, miscellaneous eating habits and strong adaptability. The daily feeding is mainly shrimp and fish, and can also be fed with @ # @ 254oysters, locusts, snail clam meat and so on. In nature, the tortoise is mainly fed with animal bait, but under artificial feeding conditions, it can be fed with mixed animal and plant feed, or artificial compound feed.

It is fed once a day in spring, summer and autumn, usually in the early morning and evening, and every 2-3 days in early spring and late autumn, and the feeding time should be noon. The yellow box turtle is the most suitable at 28 ℃, occasionally eat less at 15 ℃, hibernate below 10 ℃, or restless at 35 ℃, and stop eating.

At the beginning of November every year, due to the drop in temperature, the tortoise gradually enters hibernation. At this time, the tortoise should be transferred to indoor sand and mud to overwinter. During the overwintering period, the temperature difference should not be too large, otherwise it will affect hibernation.

In late March of the following year, when the temperature rose to about 18-19 ℃, the turtle began to move and eat. The initial feeding should be small and fine, especially after feeding, the ambient temperature should not be lower than 15 ℃, otherwise it would cause indigestion and other diseases. With the gradual increase and stability of temperature, the amount of bait can be increased accordingly, and some disease prevention drugs, calcium and vitamin E can be added to the feed regularly to promote the bone development of small turtles and increase the fecundity of parent turtles.