Reproduction
Females are oviparous, with anywhere from 3 to 11 rather large, leathery eggs being laid (4-6 most common). These are incubated by the female under the ground, and hatch after 55 to 60 days. Sexual maturity is reached at 11–18 months for males, and 20–36 months for females. Age is only one factor in determining sexual maturity and ability to breed – weight is the second factor. Males will breed at 600 grams or more, but in captivity are often not bred until they are 800 grams (1.7 lb), and females will breed in the wild at weights as low as 800 grams, though 1200 grams or more is most common; in captivity, breeders generally wait until they are no less than 1500 g (3.3 lb). Parental care of the eggs ends once they hatch, and the female leaves the offspring to fend for themselves.
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Famous quotes containing the word reproduction:
“An original is a creation
motivated by desire.
Any reproduction of an original
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It is marvelous that we are
the only species that creates
gratuitous forms.
To create is divine, to reproduce
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—Man Ray (1890–1976)
“Were I called on to define, very briefly, the term Art, I should call it “the reproduction of what the Senses perceive in Nature through the veil of the soul.” The mere imitation, however accurate, of what is in Nature, entitles no man to the sacred name of “Artist.””
—Edgar Allan Poe (1809–1845)
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—Lewis Mumford (1895–1990)