russian tortoise shell growth

Question
I have had a Russian tortoise for 6 years. Keep it indoors with UV lighting. It has grown quite a bit but the new shell growth remains a somewhat cream color and has not regained the typical shell pattern. What is that indicative of?

Answer
Hi Len,

That colour change is completely normal for a growing Russian tortoise and nothing to worry about. The dark colour in the center takes up a much larger percentage of the scute when they are young. New lighter coloured growth appears around the outer edges of the scute. That makes the dark center appear to shrink over time as it takes up a smaller and smaller portion of the scute. Occasionally you will see mature Russians with almost entirely dark scutes but the pattern you are describing is far more common.

The links here have photos of both young and older Russians   

http://www.reptilechannel.com/images/care-sheets/russian-tort-4-500.jpg

http://www.deerfernfarms.com/Tortoise_Russian.htm

I keep Redfoots and the same thing happens as they grow. Their central scute colour is yellow but new shell growth comes in dark.

This first link is a young redfoot and the second one is a mature tortoise

http://turtlesandmoreturtles.blogspot.com/2010/03/photo-of-bolivian-cherry-heade

http://www.ringneckdove.com/Wilmer's%20WebPage/aventuras4/more_kevin_photo/redfo