These Tiny Turtles Are A Big Deal

This Australia Day, the National Aquarium is celebrating the hatching of seven sandstone long-neck turtles, a freshwater species rarely encountered outside its native habitat in Australia's Northern Territory. The parents, two adult sandstone long-neck turtles that have been at the Aquarium since 2004, are likely the only representatives of this species outside of Australia.

"We believe these hatchlings to be the first at any aquarium or zoo," said Ken Howell, who oversees the care of all the animals and plants in the National Aquarium's rain forest and Australia exhibits.

These turtles, also known as sandstone snake-neck turtles or Chelodina burrungandjii, are native to the waters of the Arnhem sandstone escarpment. (An escarpment is a cliff or steep rock that separates two level land surfaces.) Because of the remoteness of their habitat, little has been recorded about their natural history. Their populations are believed to be stable, not threatened or endangered.

Arnhem Land is sparsely inhabited by Indigenous peoples and features gorges, waterfalls and the headwaters of some of the largest river systems in the Northern Territory. The region is known for its incredible biodiversity.

The adult male and female sandstone long-neck turtles have been at the National Aquarium since Australia: Wild Extremes first opened. They were exported from Australia through an official permitting process.

"We're really fortunate to have these turtles at the Aquarium," said Ken. "The successful reproduction of these turtles will allow the Aquarium to contribute to the scientific knowledge of this species."

In 2019, Ken challenged a team of Aquarium herpetologists and aquarists to research everything they could about sandstone long-neck turtles and see if they could encourage the Aquarium's pair to reproduce.

The team created a plan and began manipulating water temperatures and setting up a nesting area. Six months later, on July 29, 2020, the female laid a clutch of eggs.

Female sandstone long-neck turtles lay their eggs on land and play no role in caring for eggs or young. The Aquarium team marked each egg, put them in plastic boxes filled with an incubating material, and placed the boxes in incubators with temperatures ranging from the high to low 80s. The first egg began hatching in late October with the others following in November and December.

Each baby turtle, identified with a colored dot on its shell, is in its own enclosure in a behind-the-scenes area of Australia: Wild Extremes. Herpetologist Matt Benedict has taken the lead on their care. He weighs each turtle, feeds them, and records their weight and feeding data. The turtles weighed an average of 10 grams at hatching and have been gaining weight steadily ever since, thanks to a diet of small pieces of fish, worms and other invertebrates.

"Some hatchlings start feeding immediately while others take a lot of work," Ken explains, "so it takes a patient, dedicated and observant person to get them going."

The sandstone long-neck turtles will remain off exhibit for the foreseeable future but will be able to be seen during behind-the-scenes tours once they resume.