The timeframe between a turtle mating and laying her eggs can range between days and weeks, depending on the breed of turtle that you are referring to. Without knowing the exact breed of turtle that you are inquiring about, a specific answer cannot be given. Instead, a broad idea of how long it takes is based on the fact that a female turtle lays around five clutches a year, which are spaced out between twelve to thirty days apart. As aforementioned, this results in turtles laying their eggs in either a matter of days or weeks, depending on the type of turtle.
Following are several different ways to care for turtle eggs once they are born, depending on their different breed:
• The Water Turtle lays eggs which need incubating by burying them under sand by at least one to two inches above the eggs, to keep them warm and safe from predators. They should be left well alone following being laid until they actually hatch, as any disturbance at all may kill the turtle babies.
• With the Sea Turtle, eggs are laid ashore on a beach of sand, not rock, which occurs approximately a week after the initial mating. The eggs are generally laid during the warmest months of the year to improve their chances of survival. The mother digs a "body pit" which she places herself in and then digs with her hind flippers to create an egg cavity to ensure the safety of her offspring.
• The Painted Turtle lays its eggs within around 220m of water, but some can lay their eggs up to 300m from the shore. The process of laying the eggs can be delayed by the mother until the evening if the weather is unsuitable for a successful birth. If the weather is really too hot for the eggs, turtles in Virginia have been known to wait up to three weeks before laying, due to a bad drought.
Following are several different ways to care for turtle eggs once they are born, depending on their different breed:
• The Water Turtle lays eggs which need incubating by burying them under sand by at least one to two inches above the eggs, to keep them warm and safe from predators. They should be left well alone following being laid until they actually hatch, as any disturbance at all may kill the turtle babies.
• With the Sea Turtle, eggs are laid ashore on a beach of sand, not rock, which occurs approximately a week after the initial mating. The eggs are generally laid during the warmest months of the year to improve their chances of survival. The mother digs a "body pit" which she places herself in and then digs with her hind flippers to create an egg cavity to ensure the safety of her offspring.
• The Painted Turtle lays its eggs within around 220m of water, but some can lay their eggs up to 300m from the shore. The process of laying the eggs can be delayed by the mother until the evening if the weather is unsuitable for a successful birth. If the weather is really too hot for the eggs, turtles in Virginia have been known to wait up to three weeks before laying, due to a bad drought.
