Elseya Novaeguineae

Up to 11"

In the wild, they feed upon snails, insects, fish and worms.

Air Temperature:  Low to mid 80's

Basking Temperature:  Mid to high 80's

Water Temperature:  Low to mid 70's

6.2 - 6.5

Rivers and Swamps.

New Guinea.

Yes

These are basking turtles, so a basking spot is required. UVB lighting is needed as well as a heat lamp over the basking spot. A submersible heater is recommended if the water temps fall below the recommendation. They are excellent swimmers and their captive habitat should have a water depth as deep as possible. Substrate should be anywhere from a sand to a fine-to-medium size gravel.

Recommended size for a single adult Elseya Novaeguineae would be a 75 gallon aquarium as a minimum (90 or larger preferred). This will provide adequate swimming area, as well as assisting the filtration in maintaining good water quality. For additional Elseya Novaeguineae, I would recommend adding 40 gallons of tank space per additional turtle at a minimum.

Stock Tanks and Rubbermaid containers also work well. The same space recommendations remain the same.

In captivity, they do well on Mazuri and ReptoMin, Reptile/Pond 10, Cichlid Sticks, fish, crickets, and assorted worms and insects.

Elseya Novaeguineae are great turtles for a community habitats, but only with other Elseya and Emydura species.

Not a lot has been learned about this species and information is difficult to come by. The dietary list mentioned above is from experimentation with captives.