turtles arnt basking

[tankbuster82]

hello all i have 3 baby turts 1murry 2 kreffs
and they dont bask for some reason they r only about 2 or 3 months old everynow and then they will partly go up on land but scatter back off within a sec or to any one no y?

 

[Fennwick]

i've had a long necked turtle for almost a year now and have never seen it on its dock. maybe theyre not much of a basking species.

 

[Miss_Croft]

This is what I have found:

• They will NOT bask under UV without heat
• If warm enough – they will not bask under heat without UVB

I know when my Mercury Vapor lamp is not emitting UVB when my Turtles stop basking under it. For a turtle I suggest you look at buying a good mercury vapor lamp for a few reasons, but the main is turtles require both heat and UVB to produce Vitamin D3.

Mine will hangout under the mercury vapor lamp when it comes on for a few hours a day – and after it goes off will walk around the box.

 

[tankbuster82]

i have a fluro over the tank (fish tank light) with a reptistar 8.0 uv light and then a desk lamp with clamp on the tank shinning down on the basking spot its less then 12 " to with no glass or plastic in the way

 

[Miss_Croft]

I think they get enough UVB - if your turts are kept at the right temperature – aka they are not cold so they will not hang out under the desk lamp. Their UVB requirement “should” be supplied by your florescent light.

Note as in my last post Mercury Vapor lamps are better – they supply both heat and UVB – some say (I can find a few articles if you like) reptiles need the heat stimulus with UVB to create Vitamin D3 – used for metabolizing calcium.

Personally I would not be worried about your Turts not basking under their light – if they are under the light most of the time then your enclosure is too cold. (A bad thing as it increases the chance for your Turt to catch a cold).

 

[tankbuster82]

ok thank alot for your help

 

[Aslan]

Note as in my last post Mercury Vapor lamps are better – they supply both heat and UVB – some say (I can find a few articles if you like) reptiles need the heat stimulus with UVB to create Vitamin D3 – used for metabolizing calcium.

Miss Croft - I think this is a very broad generalisation - my experience with Mercury Vapor Bulbs has shown that they are great for dragons and the like that spend a large amount of time basking directly under their globe, however, if the animal spends only a small amount of time basking then it risks not being exposed to sufficient UV...

...in regards to a Turtle in any reasonable sized tank surely they are far less suitable - particularly in this case where the turtle seems to have very little desire to bask under a lamp...I would imagine that this turtle is getting far more use from a UV fluro that covers the entire tank than one that focusses on a small area...

 

[Tristis]

if you cool the water down i bet they will bask. if they are happy to use the water temp you porvide, they dont need to come out and get hotter.
humidity is also a reason turtles will not come out. turtles bask in humid places, if the air is to dry they wont come out. uv has nothing to do with it.

 

[77Loz]

Could the turtles be basking at times you are not around? I have 2 baby kreffts, had them a couple of weeks now and at first I thought they were not basking but then my husband would catch them on the log when I was not around. We can't be watching the tank 24 / 7 (although I would like to!).

 

[rafaeltheturtle]

hey same here. i have two juvi murrays and i never see them bask when im home. but we can see there tank from outside the house so whenever i come home in the middle of the day and look through the window, they cant really see me and they are almost always up there. guess maybe they feel more secure in the water when people are around??

 

[77Loz]

definitely i think its a security thing but i'm sure as they grow and get used to us they will feel more comfortable.