Help! What kind of turtle do i have?

Question

So today i went to a market and bought a turtle for myself. He's a small little guy, but the lady who sold it to me spoke like Japanese and i couldn't understand what type of turtle he was. Now i'm stuck with this turtle, no clue what kind it is or how to care for it.

Tomorrow i'll take it to the pet supply for some pointers.

but in the mean time..?

here are some pictures:

http://i53.photobucket.com/albums/g47/TheeEllieMae/DSC01637.jpg

http://i53.photobucket.com/albums/g47/TheeEllieMae/DSC01638.jpg

http://i53.photobucket.com/albums/g47/TheeEllieMae/DSC01632.jpg

all help is much appreciated!

Answer 1

it is a pond slider

Answer 2

it looks like to me that its a yellow belly slider

i have 4 water turtles all different sliders. i got a red ear slider, pink belly slider, yellow belly slider, and red belly slider.

Slider turtles are among the most conspicuous and abundant of all basking turtles. In spring or fall, or any time the weather is mild and the sun is out, individuals or groups of slider turtles may rest on logs, stumps or rocks.

IDENTIFICATION

They are brown or olive green, usually with a prominent patch of yellow on the side of the head. The lower jaw is rounded. The shells of yellow-bellied slider turtles average in size from 5 to 8 inches; the record is about one foot. The yellow blotch behind the eye is the most conspicuous marking and is most prominent in juveniles and females. The yellow underside of the turtle's shell sometimes is marked with round dusky smudges; these markings may be reduced in older turtles. Also, adult males may become very dark.

HABITAT

Slider turtles are abundant in the ponds and streams of the Southeast. The yellow-bellied slider turtle is found in a wide variety of habitats, including Carolina bays, sloughs, sinkholes, oxbow lakes, swamps, rivers, lakes and ponds. Sometimes they travel over land between bodies of water.

MOVEMENT

Yellow-bellied slider turtles are a semiaquatic species. Except for terrestrial excursions, the animals remain in water where submerged and floating vegetation is abundant. They move on land to lay their eggs in a terrestrial nest. The animals also move on land to and from hibernation sites or alternate feeding areas and to leave unsuitable aquatic habitats.

The periods of greatest overland and aquatic movement usually are in spring and fall. In the winter, slider turtles become dormant, but the animals sometimes are active on sunny winter days. Summer is a period of reduced basking activity, compared to spring and fall.

BREEDING

Mating occurs in the spring, although courtship behavior by males has been observed in both fall and winter. In early spring, females use their rear feet to dig nest cavities in which they lay eggs; the number of eggs depends on the size of the female. The young hatch in about three months. The hatchlings remain in the nest for the fall and winter. The next spring, the hatchlings emerge from the nest and enter the water to begin feeding.

FEEDING

Juveniles prefer a diet of insects, dead fish, tadpoles and other meat items. Adults also prefer a high- protein diet when it is available. But slider turtles can subsist on a vegetative diet, although their growth rates may be significantly lower than that of turtles whose diet is mostly meat. Plant materials in the slider turtle's diet include algae, leaves, stems, roots, fruits and seeds. They feed on larger invertebrates, such as water insects, and vertebrates such as small fish, tadpoles and frogs. Slider turtles are not normally able to capture healthy fish.

DID YOU KNOW?

    * Sliders, as well as other species of turtles, can live for more than a quarter of a century. These animals show no signs of senility at this age, research has shown.

    * Researchers at SREL found that the two best techniques for capturing turtles (which are returned to their habitat after they are marked) are baited aquatic traps and terrestrial drift fences with pitfall traps. The drift fence, about two feet high, encircles a habitat; buckets are buried on both sides of the fence every 30 feet or so. Animals moving in and out of the habitat fall into the pitfall traps.

    * Most male yellow-bellied slider turtles reach reproductive age when they are between 4 and 5-1/2 inches in length. The length of females at maturity varies from population to population. It is less than 6-1/2 inches in some and more than 8 inches in other populations.

RESEARCH

Researchers at the Savannah River Ecology Laboratory have studied slider turtles and other species for more than 25 years. Some of the significant findings are: mud turtles hibernate on land; clutch size can be determined by X-ray photography; and low levels of radioactivity occur in turtles on the Savannah River Site. The long-term perspective of turtle researchers at SREL has led scientists to the belief that senility does not seem to be a characteristic of slider turtles.

RANGE

Throughout the Southeast from southeast Virginia to northern Florida, and to Texas and Central America

Answer 3

Red Eared Slider (it doesn't have the red spots by it's ears yet because it is young)

It will look quite different when full grown and should be obvious that it is a Red Eared Slider.

http://www.wnyherp.org/care-sheets/turtl...

Answer 4

it is a red ear slider

Answer 5

Yellow-bellied slider. The spots on the underside are a dead giveaway. They are the same species as red-eared sliders, just a different subspecies. You can use the care-sheets for RESs with no problem.

Answer 6

Whatta cutie pie.  Thanks for sharing pics with us.  Looks well proportioned and healthy.

My vote goes with the RES as well, due to the placement of the not yet red 'ears,' and the prominent markings on the plastron (bottom shell).  It seems a bit heavily marked to be a Yellow Bellied, which tends to have a yellow band down the side of the head/neck, and less distinct plastron markings.

http://www.parcplace.org/yellowbellislid...

Give it a bit of time to grow up, and you'll know for sure.  lol

Either way, enjoy your new pet.

Answer 7

It's a yellow-belly slider.

Some pictures of this species:

http://www.hiltonpond.org/ThisWeek040422...

and here is a care sheet for this species:

http://www.austinsturtlepage.com/Care/cs...

Answer 8

It is a red eared slider turtle. They are easy to take care of. Just get a clean tank and fill it with water. There should be some land to bask on, though. Then, add a heat lamp by the land. Since turtles are cold blooded, they will need it to keep them warm. The tank should also been in a place where the sun is. Also there needs to be a thermometer in the water that you can check to see how warm the water temperature is. The water should be about 80 degrees. Thats all you need to get started, but turtles also like toys in the water. I know it is hard to find turtle toys so if you can't find any, just add some decorations to the cage. They should be at least the size of its head and part of its body so it can't choke. There should be no holes so it can't get stuck. They love color, so make sure that whatever you use is colorful. Also they like different things so make sure that you switch toys regularly. That's all! Congrats on your new pet and good luck! You can email me if you like.

Answer 9

yea he really looks like a red eared slider  i use to have one