Herbert Meier Herbert Meier Experiences with the Keeping of River Turtles of the Family Podocnemididae, with Considerations of their Husbandry and Propagation Like other South American chelonians, large numbers of river turtles, Podocnemis spp., were imported into Germany during the 1970’. Then, CITES came into effect, listing river turtles in its Appendix B, and the South American countries of origin instituted export bans, which resulted in these turtles becoming a rare sight in public aquaria and zoos and with private enthusiasts. Very recently, however, small numbers of the Terekay river turtle, Podocnemis unifilis, have been appearing on the stock lists of reptile dealers once more. All species of Podocnemis come with the practical difficulty for the enthusiast that they grow to fairly large sizes. In fact, none of the known species has an adult size of less than 30 cm in carapace length. Most grow distinctly larger than that, for example, Podocnemis expansa reaches up to 80 cm, Podocnemis unifilis more than 40 cm, and so does Peltocephalus dumerilianus with more than 40 cm in dorsal shell length. Being inhabitants of the expansive river systems of the Amazon and Orinoco Rivers, they are skilled and active swimmers that require adequate space in human care. At least the larger species will thus need more in terms of room than the average private keeper can make available. Comprehensive accounts of the individual species were provided by Pritchard & Trebbau (1984) so that the present work can do without repetitions. Instead, I will here report on my personal experiences with the captive keeping of three species of Podocnemis. As has been indicated already, these turtles are relatively difficult to obtain these days. It was therefore very pleasing indeed that breeding groups could be established with the aid of fellow keepers. All representatives of the family Podocnemididae occur within a certain geographical region. As a result, the husbandry requirements of the individual species are very similar in many aspects. This does not mean that there would not be any differences when it comes Fig. 1. Deep water forces the participants of the expedition to make use of all means available. 6 RADIATA 17 (3), 2008
Experiences with the Keeping of River Turtles of the Family Podocnemididae Fig. 2. Podocnemis erythrocephala were often found together with Peltocephalus dumerilianus. to the details, however. Large artificial ponds with water of adequate depth are required for every single one of them in any case. As a minimum should be regarded a water surface of at least 2-3 m². In the case of the author’s, all turtle ponds are situated in a greenhouse that is heated throughout the year. They are thus exposed to natural sunlight and subjected to a nearnatural photoperiod. Water temperatures are at least 24 °C all year round, and air temperatures never drop below 21 °C even in winter. During periods of hot weather in summer, the temperature of the water can rise to as much as 30 °C and that of the air to 40 °C. On the other hand, basking sites are artificially illuminated/heated by means of 150 W HQI flooders on overcast days and during the winter months. The floodlights are kept on for varying periods of time, with an average of eight hours per day. Depending on how high or low they are mounted above the surface, they provide hot spots with 32-37 °C. More often than not the turtles prove intraspecifically aggressive, and biting incidents are daily occurrences. It is not only the males that fight each other, but also the females. While the latter mostly squabble over the best basking spots, however, the males often engage in wild chases through the entire tank. All my installations provide hiding places in the shape of several submerged branched logs of deciduous trees. Notwithstanding these it is necessary from time to time to remove the one or other specimen and keep it separated from the others for some time. It is interesting to note in this conjunction that representatives of different species are usually entirely compatible. River turtles are omnivores. Besides fish and turtle jelly, they are fed with a range of pellets, such as various brands of cat pellets, Lundi Exquisit, and Fischfit pellets for trout. Green food is supplied at a wide variety, depending on what is readily available and economical. Besides field lettuce, endives, RADIATA 17 (3), 2008 7
