Effects of Simulated Flooding on Metabolism and Water Balance of Turtle Eggs and Embryos

Abstract

Influences of simulated flooding on metabolism and water balance of Florida red-bellied turtle (Pseudemys nelsoni) eggs and embryos were investigated. Eggs were assigned randomly to a control (non-flooding) and three flooding groups: one, three, and six days of submergence. Flooding experiments were started at day 19 of incubation. Egg mass and oxygen consumption, V O2 , of nine randomly selected eggs from each group were measured from day 19 to 43. Hatching success decreased and incubation time increased as the duration of submergence increased. No eggs in the 6-day submergence groups survived. Hatchling size did not vary among the control and submergence groups. For eggs that did not hatch, dry mass of dead embryos of the control and 1-day submergence groups was heavier than that of at day 19, and the age of dead embryos was estimated to be 42 days