Pond Slider Turtle
The slider turtle is one of the most ubiquitous and conspicuous species of turtle in the Southeast. It occurs in every type of wetland and is frequently observed basking. Individuals are also commonly encountered on land when moving between aquatic habitats. The carapace is olive to dark brown, slightly keeled, and lightly patterned in some individuals. The plastron and the underside of the marginals are typically marked with two or more large, solid black dots or blotches. Males have elongated foreclaws and long, thickened tails. Some males may also become very dark with age. The yellow stripe behind the eye is broadest directly behind the eye. Nesting females are frequently seen from May through July.
This is a medium-sized aquatic turtle with yellow streaks on a dark upper shell (carapace) and a bright red blotch on each side of the head. Adults range in size from 8.9 to 36.8 cm (3 1/2 – 14 1/2 in.). The carapace has wrinkles running the length of the shell. The head and limbs are striped with yellow. The posterior edge of the carapace (marginals) is serrated. The lower shell (plastron) is yellow with symmetrical dark blotches sometimes called “eye spots.” Juveniles have a bright green carapace with yellow streaks and the plastron has many dark “eye spots.” Males have elongate front claws. As individuals age, the yellow and red markings fade and some adult turtles, especially males, will lack these markings becoming essentially dark all over.
Another common name for the Pond Slider is the “Red-eared Slider”. When present, the red blotch on each side of the head can be used to distinguish this turtle from all other turtles. Old turtles, especially males, become very dark (melanistic) and this may obscure the red markings and yellow stripes.
This species is primarily aquatic, straying from water only to lay eggs, for dispersal and at times of drought. Still-water aquatic habitats are preferred and include lakes, ponds, wetlands and slow flowing areas of rivers and creeks. They prefer habitats that have muddy sediments and lots of aquatic vegetation. Sliders are diurnal. They spend a great deal of the day basking on rocks, logs and the shore. They are called sliders because they slide from terrestrial basking sites into the water when approached.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
This is a medium-sized aquatic turtle with yellow streaks on a dark upper shell (carapace) and a bright red blotch on each side of the head. Adults range in size from 8.9 to 36.8 cm (3 1/2 – 14 1/2 in.). The carapace has wrinkles running the length of the shell. The head and limbs are striped with yellow. The posterior edge of the carapace (marginals) is serrated. The lower shell (plastron) is yellow with symmetrical dark blotches sometimes called “eye spots.” Juveniles have a bright green carapace with yellow streaks and the plastron has many dark “eye spots.” Males have elongate front claws. As individuals age, the yellow and red markings fade and some adult turtles, especially males, will lack these markings becoming essentially dark all over.
Another common name for the Pond Slider is the “Red-eared Slider”. When present, the red blotch on each side of the head can be used to distinguish this turtle from all other turtles. Old turtles, especially males, become very dark (melanistic) and this may obscure the red markings and yellow stripes.
This species is primarily aquatic, straying from water only to lay eggs, for dispersal and at times of drought. Still-water aquatic habitats are preferred and include lakes, ponds, wetlands and slow flowing areas of rivers and creeks. They prefer habitats that have muddy sediments and lots of aquatic vegetation. Sliders are diurnal. They spend a great deal of the day basking on rocks, logs and the shore. They are called sliders because they slide from terrestrial basking sites into the water when approached.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
- 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.
