NEWS103
18
TheChineseStriped-NeckTurtlegot itspopular name from the stripeon itshead.
(optimum:20-24 °C).But farmore important
than theprevailingwater temperature is the
need for theair temperature toalwaysbe2-
3 °C higher than the water temperature.
Otherwiserespiratorydiseasesmayoccur.So
thewaterareashouldneverbeheatedwhen
the terrarium is situated in the house! The
higher air temperature will come about
automatically, as the turtles require an area
to sun themselves.This canbe providedby
having an “island” of cork floating on the
water and secured beneath a heat lamp
using a cord. The heat lamp should be
positioned so that the temperature in the
warmest spot, immediately beneath it,
measures35°C.Bear inmindthatbecauseof
their body height the turtles will be
somewhat closer to theheat source! Hence
as they grow the distance from island to
lampshouldbegradually increased.
Ocadia sinensis
are diurnally active turtles,
andhence the tankshouldbe illuminated to
simulatedaylight fortheoccupants.Asa rule
of thumb it is advisable to use 0.5watts of
fluorescent lightingper liter of nett volume
of the tank (not just thewaterpart!),and the
lighting should be on for around 12 hours
per day. UV light will do no harm, but isn’t
absolutely necessary for the rearing of
healthy Chinese Striped-Neck Turtles. But
essentially Iwould recommend it.
Food
Ocadia sinensis
is an omnivore. A common
mistake when feeding is to offer mainly
carnivorefoods.Theyshouldbefed3-4times
per week with lettuce, dandelion, and
aquatic plants, once per week with
bloodworm (available in the pet trade in
deep-frozen form for ornamental fishes),
once per week with whole Stint (available
deep frozen in thepet trade as feeder fish),
and 2-3 times per week with proprietary
foodsticks foryoungaquatic turtles.
Lexicon
ChineseStriped-Neck
Turtle
Ocadia:not explained in theoriginal
description.
sinensis:means“fromChina”.
Maintained in thisway, the turtleswill attain
theirmaximumsizeof20-30cm (depending
on the population) in 4-6 years,withmales
essentially remainingsmaller
(15-25 cm). Adult specimens should be fed
plant material, plus Stint, river shrimp
(
Gammarus
),andsticks.
Behavior
Ocadia
are essentially fairly peaceful and
femalesat leastcan readilybemaintained in
a group. Some sexually mature males can,
however, be very troublesome because of
theirpermanentreadinesstomateandmust
then be kept singly or always only
temporarily with the females. A tank
measuring around 150 x 50 x 50 cm will
suffice for agroupof threeadult specimens.
Individual males can readily be housed in
tanksofaround100x40x40cm.
From May to September Chinese Striped-
Neck Turtles can be readily maintained in
(escape-proof!) tanks outdoors. Depending
on the population, they can also be over-
winteredat lowtemperatures,butessentially
this isadvisableonlywith individualsat least
twoyearsold.
If youarenow filledwith thedesire tokeep
these lovely turtles thenyourpetdealer can
undoubtedly order them for you from a
wholesaler of his acquaintance, for example
reptilia24,Fax+496430 -9250100.
