Albino Pink Belly Side Necked Turtle

Several years ago, one of the very best US turtle breeders, Paul Vanderschouw, hatched a few Albino Pink Belly Side Necks from a small group of normal looking adults.

Most of his offspring were normal looking - so, just like their parents, they were either genetically normal, or heterozygous for albinism, but with normal appearance, there was no way to tell the "Hets" from the normals...

With some persuasion, we were able to get Paul to part with a small group of these normal looking "Possible Het" hatchlings. After several years of raising up, last year there were a few clutches of eggs from these turtles- but none hatched.

This year the first two clutches hatched out with darker than normal colors - all more "possible Hets" but no Albinos...

The third clutch produced our first Albino and six possible Hets. The second clutch produced three more Albinos and 7 more possible Hets - imagine our turtle breeding joy ; )

Because Pink Belly Side-Necks are one of the most colorful species, their Albino color morph is quite impressive compared to say the more common Albino Red Eared Sliders. The comment we hear most from visiting turtle enthusiasts/experts is: "Spectacular..." Like a negative of the normal colored Pink Belly, all the normally dark colors are light, the light colors are bright orange and their skin is translucent showing veins, arteries and the outlines of internal organs - even the most experienced turtle aficionados can't stop looking and shaking their heads...

So far these breathtaking little turtles are thriving and behaving just like any other Pink Belly Side-Necks, set up in glass aquariums as highly aquatic species with minimal basking platforms, plenty of "floor to ceiling" plants, rocks and logs - and good filtration systems.