Urgent Care :: Aggression? Mating? Possibly Homosexual??

[adammaxis]

Okay, I have 4 male turtles in my tank, 3 babies which are probably around 3-9 months old and I have 1 1-2 year old. Note: This is only temporary, on Sunday the babies and the old one will be separated and they will each have their own separate tanks.

The problem is that one of the babies is constantly bothering both the other babies and the older turtle. He frequently does the slapping himself in the head dance (he vibrates his front claws against his head) to the others. What is pretty pathetic is that the baby is actually scaring the older turtle who is at least 3 or 4 times his size. The struggles usually last 2 or 3 minutes in which they will fight all through the tank. The little baby usually pushes the older turtle around the tank. Both turtles do it in unison, but the little turtle is always the one who pushes the others against the sides and such.

I know he is not of mating age, but does this mean he is a terrible little aggressor or is he just one confused little turtle. I tried researching this behavior on the internet, but I have not come to any suitable conclusions.

[sonyj]

First off how big are the babies (shell length not including curve) and how big is the older one? If they are not at least 4 inches in length, then you won't be able to know what gender they are.

How large of a tank are they in? Too small of a tank will lead to serious aggression issues if they each do not have enough "me" space. This is typical turtle behavior and can be caused by aggression (which is what I'm thinking) but turtles who live by themselves have at times been known to do the vibrating claws thing as well, so it could be a way of them communicating with each other.

I'd be vary careful with keeping the little ones and the larger one together. There have been reports of larger turtles harming/killing baby ones both intentional and accidentally in the past. Until Sunday I'd keep as close of an eye on them as you can.

[adammaxis]

2 of the babies are 1 and 3/4 inch while the other one (runt) is 1 and 1/4 inch. The older one is 3 and 3/4 inches.

The tank is 10 gallons. I know the rule about how many gallons you are supposed to have per 1 inch of shell but this is the best I can do. I know this is really squeezing them in, but I am currently in college and have no choice.

[marisa]

They'll all have their own separate tanks this Sunday? The problem should be eliminated then, although the one that's doing the fluttering may continue it with objects in the tank (my RES does it to rocks, one of my painteds does it to the temp gauge on his water heater). If so, it's not unusual and not a worry.

[adammaxis]

It is very strange how the little one seems to be in control of the tank.