Our Resident Red-eared Pond Slider

No Name

Brought to Sharon Audubon Center: Early 1990s?

History: Although the Center has no formal record on our Red-eared Slider, we believe she was once someone's personal pet and was donated to the Center to use in education programs.  The Center receives MANY calls from people each year trying to find "a good home" for their pet sliders after discovering they cannot provide the proper care. Red-eared sliders are commonly found for sale in pet shops, usually young and small and relatively inexpensive, but they do require special care and they do grow bigger!  Unfortunately, the Audubon Center cannot take in all of these abandoned pets and they should not be released into the wild because they cannot survive the harsh CT winters and they compete with native turtle species.

Red-eared Pond Slider

(Trachemys scripta elegans)

Description:  A medium to large aquatic turtle which are easily distinguished by the bright red streak across the sides of the head. Young Red-eared sliders are bright green with intricately detailed markings on the carapace (top shell) and a yellow plastron (bottom shell) as they mature the colors become dull, and adults tend to have a drab olive to nearly black coloration. Males can be identified by their long front claws, and a longer tail than females.

Size: Adults can grow to over 12 inches in diameter.

Lifespan: In captivity these turtles can live for over 40 years if properly cared for.

Diet: Red-eared Pond Sliders are Omnivores who enjoy a variety of foods including vegetation, insects and small fish.  Young turtles tend to be more carnivorous and become more herbivorous as they grow older.

Habitat: A primarily aquatic turtle that can often be seen basking on rocks or fallen logs near the waters edge.

Range:  Native Range is widespread, throughout the Mississippi River Valley from eastern New Mexico to Alabama and north from Oklahoma to Illinois. 

Other Notes:  When basking Red-eared turtles are scared, they quickly “slide” back into the water to avoid predators.