how long does it take for painted turtles to hatch
Painted turtle Incubation lasts 72–80 days in the wild[45] and for a similar period in artificial conditions.[49] In August and September, the young turtle breaks out from its egg, using a special projection of its jaw called the egg tooth.[53] Not all offspring leave the nest immediately, though.[45] Hatchlings north of a line from Nebraska to northern Illinois to New Jersey[54] typically arrange themselves symmetrically[55] in the nest and overwinter to emerge the following spring.[45]
Turtle shell The carapace is the dorsal (back), convex part of the shell structure of a turtle, consisting of the animal's ossified ribs fused with the dermal bone. The spine and expanded ribs are fused through ossification to dermal plates beneath the skin to form a hard shell. Exterior to the skin the shell is covered by scutes, which are horny plates made of keratin that protect the shell from scrapes and bruises. A keel, a ridge that runs from front to the back of the animal is present in some species, these may be single, paired or even three rows of them. In most turtles the shell is relatively uniform in structure, species variation in general shape and color being the main differences. However the soft shell turtles, pig-nose turtles and the leatherback sea turtle have lost the scutes and reduced the ossification of the shell. This leaves the shell covered only by skin.[11] These are all highly aquatic forms.