Hello! We are interesting turtles and are called Red-eared Turtles or Red-eared Terrapins. Apart from our distinctive red stripe near our ear, we have some interesting things about us that you might want to know. Have a look:
- We are well known and mostly seen for our basking behavior. As we have cold blood, we regularly have to put ourselves in sunlight to regulate the temperature. Hence, you can see many of us in our habitat just staying in sunlight on rocks.
- We are called red-eared sliders too, this is because when we bask on rocks, we often slide off and log into the water quickly.
- Do you know? We are invasive species, meaning, we are very competitive and feed on most of the food available near us making other turtle species near us foodless and dominating the habitat.
- We undergo a process called brumation. It is a kind of sleep, where we wake up only for food. We are very inactive during this time.
- We are one of the few animal species in the world that has a very large range. Due to our adaptiveness, we can live in most of the environments.
- An interesting thing about us is, when we are in our eggs, our sex is determined by the temperature of incubation. If the temperature is 22-27 degrees Celsius, males are born and if it’s more females are born.
- If you are a comic book fan, you must definitely know the series “The tales of teenage mutant ninja turtle”. In the second volume of the series, the main characters were depicted as us which led to our fame and many people having us as pets.
SOME QUICK FACTS:
Our Scientific Name: Trachemys scripta elegans.
Identification: Greenish turtle with black and yellow striped limbs and a red strip near the ear.
Our Habitat: places with still, warm water, like ponds, swamps, lakes, slow rivers or streams.
Our Range:
Our Food Habits: Omnivorous; feed on aquatic plants, fruits, seeds, flowers, small fish, shrimp, and frogs.
Our Breeding Period: March and July.
Number of eggs laid: 2-30 eggs.
Our Incubation period: 59-112 days.
Our Lifespan: 20-30 years in captivity; more in wild.
IUCN red list status: Least Concern.
CITES: Appendix I
Indian Wildlife Protection Act: Schedule IV
SCIENTIFIC CLASSIFICATION:
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Testudines
Suborder: Cryptodira
Family: Enydidae
Genus: Trachemys
Species: T. scripta
Subspecies: T.S. elegans
COMPLETE DETAILS FOR ANIMAL ENTHUSIASTS:
We are semi-aquatic turtles with a small red strip around our ears, hence the name red-eared terrapin. We are called slider because we have the ability to slide off rocks and logs into the water quickly.
We are scientifically called Trachemys scripta elegans.
Let us tell you about our species.
HOW WE LOOK:
As said earlier, we have a distinguished red stripe near our ear. The upper part of our bodies is mostly shell which is called carapace that can reach more than 40cm. We have an average body length ranging from 15cm-20cm.
The color of our carapace is from light green when young to dark green as we old and turns brown and olive green when we get too old. Our carapaces also have visible variable markings. Our heads, legs, and tail are green with irregular yellow lines.
Females of our species are larger than the males with males having longer claws on their front feet and also thicker and longer tail.
WE ARE FOUND IN:
We are almost aquatic but being cold-blooded we have to sunbathe to regulate temperature making us come out of the water.
We usually live in areas where there are rocks with calm water so that we can come out of the water whenever we require the sunlight and also places with still, warm water, like ponds, swamps, lakes, slow rivers or streams.
Though we are now found almost in every part of the world, our range lies in the United States, especially in the south-eastern part and also in the Gulf of Mexico.
WHAT WE EAT:
We are hungry omnivores who eat aquatic plants, fruits, seeds, flowers, small fish, shrimp, and frogs. Adults require a lot of aquatic plants as their diet even if they are omnivores.
OUR REPRODUCTION:
We have our courtship and mating underwater in between March and July. The female spends extra time basking in the sun to keep the eggs warm. The female lays 2-30 eggs at a time and can lay up to 5 times a year.
The incubation period ranges between 59-112 days. The new hatchling has an egg-tooth to break open the egg from the inside and this egg-tooth falls off after an hour of hatching. The young hatchling goes into the water after 21 days.
The temperature of the surroundings determines the sex of the hatchling. A male is born when incubation temperature is about 22-27 degrees Celsius and a female is born at a warmer temperature.
We have a lifespan of 20-30 years with some of us living up to 40. Surprisingly, we live longer outside than being in captivity.
MORE ABOUT US:
The variable markings or stripes on our shell help us in camouflaging.
We do not hibernate but we brumate which is a form of sleep and waking up occasionally for food or air. We become less active during this period.
We are conquerors, we mature quickly, we grow larger and our population growth is very fast hence leading to out-compete other turtle species.
OUR CONSERVATION:
We are abundantly found in various parts of the planet. We are considered as pets in many places. We are “Least Concern” in the IUCN red list and listed in CITES Appendix I. In India, since we can be exploited, we are protected under schedule IV of the Indian Wildlife Protection Act, 1972.
