Great view of N.L.Pilbarensis egg laying site

[Glider]

Well my ladies usually lay right at the back, but this one decided to give me a treat.
Oh and when she was finished the whole process a couple of hours later, the slope was smooth and from looking at it you woudn't guess the hill had been distrubed.

 

[oli]

i always wondered why they tuck them so far down, i guess for safety, but wouldn't it be tough for the hatchlings to dig up through the dense sand once they hatched? Kinda curious what percentage of hatchlings would make it if they were incubated naturally in the deep sand...

 

[Riverside Reptiles]

That's a great picture. A good one for newbies to see what to expect when eggs are laid.

@ Oli, my levis always bury all the down to the bottom of the enclosure to lay. So, I assume what they're looking for is a sold place to lay. Perhaps in the wild it wouldn't be as deep as they'd be more likely to hit a rock or something?

 

[oli]

yeah mine do the same, so small, but if I put them in my backyard, they could excavate me a pool. I don't think they would stop digging til they hit 'liquid hot magma' if I put them at the beach.

 

[Glider]

Oli- I think the depth at which they lay has a lot to do with instinct and being deep enough to hold a steady temp. In the desert the surface temp can range from over 50C daytime down to -5C nighttime, so they need to bury the eggs deep enough that surface changes don't have a lot of effect on the substrate. I haven't observed wild nest sites, but I think that once you get to about 30cm (1ft) down in the dirt, it will hold a reasonably constant temp suitable for egg development.

Very good point about the bubs digging their way out though, they're accomplished diggers right from the word go but it would be a monumental task to digg through a foot of sand, which will probably have a hard top crust too.

And yes, if I ever have a field I need ploughing, I'll get my knobbies on the job and sit back with a beer