Your marginated tortoise can't tell you the basking spot has drifted cool, or that it's not fit to hibernate this winter. baskr watches the pattern across your logs, temperature, humidity, weight and feeding, and shows you what needs attention before it becomes a problem.
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Doing okay
Marginated Tortoise
Basking too cool
Averaged 29°C vs the 32–35°C it needs. Check the basking lamp.
Basking spot
32–35°C · 90–95°F
Cool side
20–25°C · 68–77°F
Humidity
40–60%
Ideal ranges for Testudo marginata, the same targets baskr scores your logs against.
Basking and warm figures are surface temperatures at the spot; cool and ambient are air. Measure with a probe or infrared thermometer at the animal's height.
Diurnal
Active by day
Greece & the southern Balkans
Wild climate. Mediterranean hills; hot dry summers and cool winters, which healthy adults hibernate through.
Why the care is what it is. This is why baskr targets a 32 to 35°C basking spot, strong UVB and a dry weed diet, with a controlled winter hibernation for healthy adults.
Logging is the input. The product is spotting when a single off reading becomes a pattern worth acting on.
32–35°C (90–95°F)
A cool basking spot undercuts appetite and digestion.
20–25°C, dry and draught-free
Cold, damp conditions risk respiratory infection.
40–60%, with a humid hide for youngsters
Too dry while growing pyramids the shell; too damp risks infection.
Steady, and a healthy weight before any hibernation
An underweight or unwell tortoise should not be hibernated, check with an experienced vet.
Weeds and greens, high fibre
Fruit and rich foods cause runny droppings and harm.
A gradual seasonal slow-down in cool months
baskr separates a normal pre-hibernation dip from off-season illness to act on.
Safe to include
Avoid
A weed lawn kept fairly dry is ideal, this is a Mediterranean grazer, not a fruit or salad tortoise.
Staples
Occasional / treats
Never feed
Supplements. Calcium (a cuttlebone plus light dusting) and UVB.
Good to know. A high-fibre weed grazer, like its Testudo relatives. Fruit and rich foods cause runny droppings and harm.
The right kind of kit, pick brands you trust.
UVB lighting
A high-output 10–12% T5 HO tube (Ferguson zone 3–4) over the basking zone, replaced every 12 months.
Basking heat
A basking lamp to reach 32–35°C over a solid spot, on a thermostat.
Thermostat
Controls the heat safely.
Thermometer + hygrometer
To track the basking zone and keep damp in check.
Cuttlebone / calcium
A cuttlebone to gnaw supports shell and beak.
A controlled hibernation method
For healthy adults: a monitored fridge or cool cellar method, done with veterinary guidance.
Grounded in your own logs and the ideal ranges above, plain language, never a diagnosis.
Basking spot averaged 29°C this week, below the 32–35°C a marginated tortoise needs. Check the lamp.
Cold and damp readings together, a respiratory-infection risk. Dry and warm the enclosure and watch breathing.
Weight has dropped ahead of the cool season. Don't hibernate an underweight or unwell tortoise, check with an experienced reptile vet first.
Enter your own readings for an instant care score, the same check baskr runs for you every day.
Enter a reading or two above to see Marginated Tortoise's care score.
A quick guide, not a diagnosis. Ideal ranges vary with age, morph and setup, and individual animals differ, so confirm anything critical with an experienced keeper or a reptile vet.
They're the largest European tortoise, reaching around 30–35 cm, with the distinctive flared rear scutes adults develop. They need a slightly larger table than a Hermann's or Greek.
Healthy adults do, in a controlled way and after a vet check. Never hibernate an unwell or underweight tortoise, use a monitored method rather than a cold garage.
Edible weeds, leafy greens and grasses, a high-fibre, dry-country diet. Avoid fruit and high-protein foods.
Very similar Mediterranean care, the marginated is just larger and has the flared 'skirt' scutes. Same dry setup, weed diet, strong UVB and controlled hibernation.
Log your marginated tortoise's care in seconds and baskr does the watching. Free for your first 3 animals.
Start freeLast reviewed August 2026. General husbandry guidance, not veterinary advice, and ranges vary with age, morph, subspecies and setup. Confirm anything critical with an experienced keeper or an exotics vet.