Minutes of the Discussions Fig. 3. Stephan Böhm (Vienna) during his lecture. Rather secretive habits have been described for specimens in human care. The turtles have a calm and unaggressive disposition. One keeper has been successfully housing both sexes together (1.2 Batrachemys raniceps) in the company of 1.1 Mesoclemmys gibba in a tank of 150 cm in length; no aggressive behaviour could be noted towards other species either. Another keeper reported that juvenile Batrachemys raniceps were aggressive amongst each other, engaging in biting fights; adult specimens were aggressive as well, and no joint husbandry was possible. The animals had to be fed individually as they were extremely jealous of food; even juveniles begged for food. A third keeper described a male Batrachemys nasuta that behaved aggressively towards a female of the same species. No intraspecific aggression was observed in the case of Batrachemys tuberculata. Captive-bred Batrachemys raniceps were notable for scutellation anomalies; incubation temperature was 31 °C in this case. One participant confirmed that constant high incubation temperatures would lead to scutellation anomalies. It appears that there is no diapause in representatives of the genus Batrachemys. Hatchlings turn over inside their eggs before hatching. One keeper reported about the oviposition of the Batrachemys raniceps in his care: terrestrial section 30 × 60 cm, filled with dry sand 25 cm deep, hotspot mounted above the ramp leading onto land; if a female is seen basking, it is an indication of gravidity as it will otherwise not leave the water (this was confirmed by another keeper). Eggs were buried only very superficially; one clutch was hidden beneath a branch of cork oak. One keeper placed a highly gravid female on land, as she would not go there on her own. The female was restless, and the keeper blocked her view at, and access to, the water with his hand until the turtle began excavating a nest pit and laying her eggs. 74 RADIATA 17 (3), 2008
Minutes of the Discussions Subject: The Genus Phrynops Phrynops hilarii can grow to more than 50 cm in carapace length; a very large specimen used to be kept at the Leipzig Zoo in the 1980’. One participant confirmed carapace lengths of more than 40 cm for two females, and more than 30 cm for a male, respectively. Two keepers were referred to who keep their Phrynops hilarii in outdoor enclosures during summer. One participant pointed out that the Argentinean parts of the distribution range sometimes experience frost at night. In Uruguay, the species is kept and bred in outdoor enclosures. One keeper summarized his experiences as follows: clutch sizes of 6-10 eggs; one female died of egg-binding after she was kept from accessing the terrestrial part by another female specimen; the latter only began to produce eggs after this point of time; kept in a greenhouse, temporary local temperature maxima of 40-45 °C may be reached at the basking site; basking could still be observed at air temperatures as low as 10 °C; twelve eggs were laid in the shape of a pyramid on the substrate of the terrestrial section, but none of these hatched. Keeping Phrynops species together must be advised against; hybridisation with Phrynops geoffroanus is a distinct possibility. One participant reported about the joint keeping of 1.1 Phrynops geoffroanus. Before the female eventually perished, she produced two clutches with twelve and six eggs, respectively; all eggs hatched successfully. Subject: The Matamata, Chelus fimbriata Deep water is not only possible, but even recommendable. Reference was made to an aquarium keeper who has been keeping his matamatas in water 120-150 cm deep. The installation of one participant offers a water depth of 60 cm, which corresponds to observations made in Venezuela, where matamatas were found at this depth in rivers. Juveniles kept to the same water depth, hiding in vegetation Fig. 4. View into the REPTILIUM. RADIATA 17 (3), 2008 75
