How do i find out what type of turtle i have?

Question

I don't think it's a Red-Eared Terrapin/slider because it dosen't have red ears

Answer 1

Sliders, cooters , painted, mississippi map, yellow bellied ,chicken cooters all are basically the same and require the same basic care.

This looks like a map turtle. They change so much as they grow.

They all start out pretty green and get ugly olive green as they age.

I have had my 2 slider  girls for 36 yrs. Plus an 8 and 5 yr old and now a 2 yr old adopted from this site.. And in a pond for almost 7 yrs now. Got them on my 18th birthday!

Do you know how long I have carted these guys around, 36 longggg yrs.  I have spent so many  $$$ I could have bought a small island by now!

http://flickr.com/photos/29035692@N03/se...

The bigger the environment the bigger the healthier the turtle. Remember 10 gallons for every inch of turtle. I have used kiddy pools and plastic pond liners from most nurseries and worked great.

Did you know that they need to bask under a reptile light UVA/UVB for 8 to 10 hrs a day for the vitamin D that they need to grow. So that means getting a turtle dock also.

Leave the heater on 75 to 78 degrees always. These turtles in captivity do not hibernate their eating may slow down some but they will not hibernate.

Their water needs to be clean otherwise they get sick easily from dirty water cause they p**p allot.

Total Body length: 5-8" average, up to 12 inches max. Life span: 15-25+ years

Males have the longer front nails and are used in mating. And are considered mature at about 5 yrs old. You can’t start sexing till about  3” across.

You need a good filter system! Gravel larger than they can swallow.

You need to feed them feeder guppies, goldfish or minnows for protein and calcium daily drop 20 or so in the tanks and watch them disappear in a few days! When I got these two 36 yrs ago all we had in back then  were goldfish to feed , so after 36 yrs and still going strong. They can eat goldfish! I spend about 175.00 a month on fish ,goldfish and minnows. An Extra  75.00 on leafy greens and dried cubed tubiflex worms.

This way when they swim for their dinner they get exercise also!

They sleep at the bottom of rivers, streams. lakes or ponds or your tank to avoid predators like coyotes,  foxes, owls, hawks, possums, raccoons and even some wide mouth bass.

TOSS in a bird cuttle bone in the water for calcium. it will dissolve real slow and if they eat it that’s fine!!

They can have garden worms, meal worms, snails, crickets, flies, crayfish small frogs, dragon flies and  anything that moves, but only as a treat.

They need leafy greens Romaine, Butter lettuce. (Iceberg and cabbage are bad for them, any other leafy greens will do) for vitamin A that they need at least 3 to 4 times a week.

You probably already know that they get sick easily, shell rot, respiratory sickness, lopsided swimming, coughing, blowing bubbles from their nose.

**Swollen cloudy eyes means lacking in Vitamin A. Which we all need for good eyes. Google ‘vegetables with Vitamin A.

Contact the “www.anapsid.org/societies, for a turtle vet /  rescue in your city and state.

I wish you luck.

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What color of eyes?

Midland painted?

Answer 2

If your turtle looks like them, but with orange/ yellow ears, then it is most probably either a yellow bellied slider, or a painted turtle.

Answer 3

RES's may get red ears a bit later, and some never get them.  So, that doesn't rule out it being a RES.

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

Here's a link for the Yellow Belly Slider (YBS) also:

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

But, you said the head doesn't match.  So, if the shape is different, it could be a Map turtle.  If the pattern on the shell is close to that photo of the RES, but the lines are more distinct, and in a 'swirl' type pattern on each individual scute (shell section), then I'd suspect that it's a Map turtle.

Maps lack the red ear of the RES, and have stronger white lines on the skin, than a RES does.  Not as many, but a bit wider.  There is usually a well defined white 'blaze' down the center of the head starting at the nose and ending just behind the eyes, and also a cresent chape behind the eyes.  Also, the webs between the toes tend to be yellow or white.  

The plastron (bottom shell) is unpatterned, and a creamy white.  The bridge (space between the top and bottom shell, on the side) has several round markings.  Claws are longer than a RES's.

The back of the shell has a 'saw edge,' though this isn't noticable in younger animals, and it has several 'saw teeth' down the center of the carapace (top shell).

Found this site but it doesn't show a baby:

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

Here is another for the false Map, agains no baby pic:

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

Good luck with the lil guy, and I hope this has been helpful.

Answer 4

Well if it's a snapper you'll know basically right away.

Answer 5

All those photos are red eared sliders.

You probably have a Painted Turtle with species below.

http://turtle_tails.tripod.com/paintedtu...

and you can look around that website for more turtles.

Answer 6

I think you should compare photos. You can find pretty much any picture of any specie of turtle or tortoise on the internet :)

Answer 7

you could add a photo.  if it is wild-caught, i suggest you release it.

Answer 8

orange ears huh? i bet its a baby turtle. i think it might be a res. the orange will darken as it gets older. i got a yellow bellied sldier. they look very similar

Answer 9

Judging from the first photo it looks like a Red-Eared Terrapin which are widely available in the U.K. they need warm water & feed on ants eggs,mealy worms etc.Please do not put it back into the wild,there have been some released into a local duck pond recently because they have got too big for their owners, only too have had to be put down because they have been attacking ducklings & other wildlife.Hope this helps.  N.B Not all Red-eared Terrapins have the 'red ears' until quite mature.