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Red-eared Slider

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Trachemys scripta elegans Photo © Animal-World: Courtesy David Brough

   The Red Eared Slider has been a favorite household pet for many years!

   Because they can can tolerate a wide variety of conditions and become quite tame in captivity, Red Eared Sliders make wonderful pets. They are quiet, and when tame are calm and generally slow-moving. Consequently they don't instill the cautious concerns that some folks have when dealing with other types of reptiles. They can be quite hardy when provided with the right environment, have fairly modest requirements, and live a long time.

   These are some of the most prolific and widespread species of freshwater turtles in the world. In addition there are several beautiful color morphs of the Red-eared Slider available; including albino, pastel, and leucistic.

For more Information see:
Selecting and Caring for Your Turtle or Tortoise

Status
  The Common Sliders Trachemys scripta are listed on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: LR - lower risk.

Description:
   Over their incredibly large range in nature, Red-eared Sliders are quite variable in patterning and color. They can be grayish green, bright lime green with wonderful yellow spots and squiggles, or dark green with dark markings. They all have the typical red “ear” coloration that runs from the eyes to the back of the head. This coloration can have a variety of shapes and a range of color, but all true Red-ears have this characteristic.
   Males of all populations of Red-ears become darker as they age. Some become an entirely black turtle with the pattern and even the red “ear” difficult to see. Males are usually smaller than females and with larger front claws and longer tails. This species generally ranges between 8 to 10” (20.3 - 25.4 cm) with a maximum recorded size of 11.4" or 28.9 cm (Conant and Collins, 1991).

Care and Feeding:
   Red Eared Sliders exhibit a feeding pattern typical of many freshwater turtle species. As young, they are carnivores, eagerly consuming insects, insect larvae, and a variety of other invertebrates. As they grow, they begin feeding on a variety of plant matter in addition to the live prey. As they reach adulthood, most sliders will continue to feed on animal matter in the form of fish, worms, and insects.
   In captivity, most sliders will eagerly eat commercial turtle food and will eat large amounts of the aquatic plants found in their enclosures. Respect their need for a varied diet as young sliders are prone to shell defects and abnormal growth due to insufficient diets.

Environment:
Indoors:
   A basic setup in a large tub (48”w x 84”l x 20”d) or stock tank will be sufficient to hold three or four adult Red-eared Sliders. Add an efficient filtration system, a shop light fixture with UVB-emitting bulbs, and at least one basking spot with a 100-watt spotlight mounted above.
   Add a variety of floating and submerged aquatic plants to the slider enclosure. In addition to helping keep the water clean and healthy, plants will add some variety to the sliders’ diet.

Baby Red Eared Slider Photo © Animal-World

A good beginning home for a small or baby Red Eared Slider is an aquarium. Purchase at least a 20-gallon aquarium. Also required are a filter, a heater, a pump and airstone, a sandy or gravel substrate, live aquatic plants, chlorine remover and other water conditioners, and a small bulb to provide a basking spot for the young turtle.    None of these supplies can be left out of the proper baby turtle enclosure. Fortunately, these turtles are typically very hardy captives and thrive in proper conditions.

Outdoors:
   The Red Eared Slider does very well in outdoor ponds. It can thrive outside in warmer climates and is active year-round. It will hibernate in more severe environments and can tolerate cold winter conditions, often hibernating under the ice.
   They love to bask, so at least one large basking spot per enclosure should be available. Outdoors, ponds and pools must be secure as Red-eared Sliders will usually leave unfenced areas quickly – The “Call of the Wild” pulling them to the local farm pond or nearby river.
   Care must be taken that these, and any turtles, are not released into a wild habitat. The reasons are many. The introduction of non-native species can lead to the introduction of diseases and can lead to hybridization of introduced and native species. In addition, many turtles raised in captivity and released into wild situations are confused, unable to cope with extreme weather changes, and many surely fall prey quite quickly to the wary predators they may encounter.

Handling:
   Red Eared Sliders become very tame in captivity and will tolerate some handling. They will readily swim up to the keeper and take food out of his or her hand. They become quite curious and will watch anyone in the room with them in hopes of getting a free handout.
   Older sliders and those kept in ponds tend to be more nervous and will scratch and flail when removed for handling or cleaning.

Breeding:
   Adult males of many species of sliders are characterized by the growth of long claws on their front feet. In addition many male sliders grow darker as they age. This appearance of long claws and the trend toward melanism can aid the slider keeper in identifying his males and females at a glance.
   Captive breeding is simple and straightforward in most sliders. The male engages in an elaborate courtship ritual that involves swimming above the female, scratching her carapace with his elongated nails, head twitching, and more. If their environment is healthy and females are given access to a proper laying area, sliders are quite prolific producers. Adults breed throughout the spring and a female can lay up to three clutches of 6-10 eggs each year. This species exhibits temperature dependent sex determination; eggs incubated at less than 80° F (27° C) produce males, 82 to 84° F (28° to 30° C) produce a mixed ratio, and those incubated at 86° F (30° C) produce females.
   Be aware that adults eagerly consume hatchlings if a nest hatches within the adult's enclosure. Care must be taken to remove the eggs for incubation or to protect the nest with a wire cage if it is to be incubated on-site.
Hatchlings thrive in the proper environment with good water quality, UVB and heat, and a varied diet. Babies relish invertebrates such as blackworms, small redworms, and even crickets as well as commercial pelleted food. They grow quickly and can reach breeding size in 3-4 years.

Ailments / Health Problems:
   Not many, but shell and skin infections arise from poor nutrition and ear abscesses are occasionally seen in sliders kept in poor quality water with abnormally high levels of bacteria. These injuries can be treated by removing the turtle from the water. The infected area should be dried and an application of Betadine followed by a layer of silvadene cream should be applied. The turtle should be kept warm on a towel in a tub for several hours before it is returned to the water. This should be repeated every day for a week while the area heals.
   If the turtle’s water is not clean and aerated the problem will recur quickly. If the turtle is being bullied or too many turtles are kept in a small enclosure, this and other problems will occur until the situation is corrected.

Availability:
   Red-eared Sliders are commonly available throughout the U.S. in pet stores, at reptile shows, and on-line. They are usually inexpensive to purchase but one must realize that the expenses of setting up a proper environment are considerable.

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Latest Comments
Hi, my name is jason. I have RES and they get along. The strange thing is they watch tv, like anime, whenever I turn on the tv. Jason 2009-06-17
Hello, I am Jonas. I too have a red eared slider, and two yellow bellied turtles. I am also convinced that my RES loves music, because when the radio is on, he starts dancing! Jonas 2009-06-13
Hi I'm Suni. I have 2 RES. One fell into my pool, I guess from the lake in my backyard. I named it April. I found her April 2nd. The other one, my cousins and I were at the lake, and a little head popped out of the water. The RES climbed out and we kept him! The 2 turtles get along really well, and they eat a lot! But, they do have great personalities! Suni 2009-06-01
I have one RES about 2 yrs old. His name is Hermie. He seems to like music. Does anyone else have a turtle that likes music...I took him to my preschool, and the kids just love singing time now because the turle will swim up to the glass and pop his head out like he is listening. They even seem to think he dances during this time. Even if he is not we enjoy watching him, and he has been a blessing to my classroom. Kelly Miller 2009-05-14
My name is Mike form Port Jervis N.Y. I have 2 RES named Cash Money, and Dollar. Cash Money is about 3 and growing like crazy. Dollar is 1 1/2 and has a lump on the side of his hesd below the eye. I assume it's an ear abscess and the info I gathered from this awesome website says to treat it with betadine then follow with silvadine. I pray it works...it looks painful. Poor little Dollar. Thanx 4 the info animal-world! Mike 2009-05-13
Some of the coolest comments:
I just noticed an earlier comment states "Their hard shells make them practically immune to injuries from falls, so if they freak out while being handled and get dropped, don't worry." That is bad, and dangerous advice. A turtle's shell does provide some protection sure, but a LOT of internal damage can occur when a turtle is dropped. Imagine this example if you will. A mishandled turtle is dropped or allowed to fall from a counter. He lands on his shell on the hard floor. This internal organs still have momentum from the fall (Kinetic energy) and can tear or suffer damage as they now continue to move inside of him (imagine crashing your car into a tree without a seatbelt). The turtles insides are like passengers inside the car, not wearing seat-belts. Another example would be falling and hitting your head on the cement. While your skull may not crack, you can easily suffer a Concussion as your brain "bounces" around inside your skull. I ask that the prior comment be removed, or at least edited to delete that one line. Turtles suffer from enough bad handling due to improper care advice as it is (death bowls for example). mark 2009-04-01
Hello, my name is Alex, and over the summer we bought two RES. I find these little guys to be quite smart, they know me, and will only rush to one side of the tank if I am near it. Anyone else spooks them. I have noticed the assumed male is very bold, and is easy to handle. The assumed female is a bit more nervous, tries to run away when picked up, and spends most of her time hiding in their cactus tunnel. She has also grown much faster than the male. They seem to do very well with a gravel substrate, and if you have a large bowl or strainer, the substrate takes no less than five minutes to clean. We usually rinse and scrub the tank walls, rinse and scrub the rocks and cactus tunnel. We do this about bi-weekly. (note that the tank is 10 gallon, and takes a while to actually get dirty). We keep the water about the same height as the width of their shells, which for ours is one and a half inches. For our turtles this gravel works nicely since they enjoy digging little craters and like to crawl. It also prevents slipping that would happen with a glass floor, whenever they poke their heads up to breathe. We don't use a heating source, and simply keep the tank at room temperature. I highly recommend artificial plants, since these turtles will eat live plants. Fake plants give them extra places to hide. We use a big flat rock as a ramp, with a gravel hill beside it for them to climb up and bask. Do note that these little guys can climb, and tend to accidentally flip themselves on their backs, and I have a friend who's adult RES climbed up the filter and escaped. Their hard shells make them practically immune to injuries from falls, so if they freak out while being handled and get dropped, don't worry. I have a lot of flat river rocks for them to literally climb over to get climbing urges out of their system. We also have an air stone, it' not necessary but they really enjoy the extra oxygen in the water. They are very sweet, don't bite at all, don't scratch. When picking them up you should gently pinch them between fingers and thumb, their stomach resting on your fingers, and back under your thumb. This keeps them from running away and scratching you if something spooks them. They also get nervous when put back in a tank after cleaning and things have been moved around dramatically. Try to keep the set up as similar as possible after cleanings to avoid stress. alexandra 2009-01-25
Comments Dr Jungle REALLY Likes to Hear!
A few days ago i bought two baby red-eared sliders, they are about the size of a quarter and a fifty-cent piece. At first they didnt eat much (im asuming they were nervous), but now they eat most the food i give them. They are extremely fun to play with and they love going in the tub to swim around. I named them rob and big lol. I love this site, and it helped me identify my turtles. Thanx for all the great information. Jordy 2007-07-04
That's a good amount of information here. The only thing I was wondering about was they pyramiding of the shell, where the young/hatcling turtle is fed too much protein too quickly and it causes the shell to grow like a pyramid; unevenly. I've recently taken in a RES in my area and have easily converted him to Reptomin, and he'll also eat dried krill and brine shrimp, and he loves his frozen blackworms. Monica 2006-05-04

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Author: Russ Gurley
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