turtle question - courtship behavior

cellodaisy

cellodaisy

AC Members
Jan 11, 2009
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Cincinnati OH 45219
meganstrickland.com
Since we seem to have some turtle-keepers in the fora right now...

My little eastern painted turtle (http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=179685) recently engaged in what appeared to be the EPT courtship behavior with the end of a piece of driftwood in his/her(?) aquarium. Milo floated facing the stick, then reached forward and fluttered his/her claws on the sides of the stick. That sure sounds like the male half of the EPT courtship ritual, but Milo is nowhere NEAR old enough to be sexually mature. Is it normal to see in a turtle so young? Does this mean Milo is definitely male? I'm not worried about it, but very curious!
 
Sounds like your turtle might be a male. How old is the EPT? They usually take a few years to become sexually mature. You'll know for sure if it's a male if it developes the long front claws used in courtship. Maybe Milo thinks the piece of driftwood is a female. There is a good chance it could be a male the way it's acting. Male turtles in general can be pretty horny at time and will harass females 24/7 with courting attempts.
 
I got Milo as a quarter-sized hatchling last March, so I assume he/she is somewhere between 10 months and a year old. Seems awfully young for that kind of behavior---my understanding is that you can't really tell sex until they're 3 or 4 years old---, but he/she certainly seemed to be treating the end of the stick like a female.
 
Yep, 3-4 years is about normal for Painted Turtles to reach sexually maturity. Males usually mature a bit faster than females.
 
I have no particular plans to breed. Milo sort of fell into my lap (almost literally), so I've become a turtle-keeper by accident. Now that I have Milo and have done some research, I do think EPTs are a better choice than RESs for most people just because they're smaller. Since EPTs are harder to find, I'm not opposed to the idea of breeding to help future turtle-keepers get animals that are a little easier to care for, but again I have no particular plans to do so. If Milo really was courting that stick at less than a year old, sounds like he/she would know how to get the job done!
 
Turtles will often "practice" the little wavy courtship dance well before they are old enough to breed, and with inanimate objects (rocks, driftwood) as well as other turtles (male or female). Nothing unusual.
 
sploke said:
Turtles will often "practice" the little wavy courtship dance well before they are old enough to breed, and with inanimate objects (rocks, driftwood) as well as other turtles (male or female). Nothing unusual.
Click to expand...
Well, that explains it! Thank you for that very enlightening bit of information. Would this be an indication that Milo is male, or would both male and female young'uns be doing this?
 
At that age, it can't really be used to reliably indicate gender.
 
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