How to Care for Red-Eared Sliders in Autumn? Keeping Methods and Precautions

The full name of the red-eared slider is the Brazilian red-eared turtle, a species of aquatic turtle native to the central United States down to northern Mexico, so how should red-eared sliders be kept in autumn?

1. Growth habits of the red-eared slider

The red-eared slider is a turtle of the family Emydidae, genus Trachemys, and is one of the world's 100 most dangerous invasive alien species. Red-eared sliders are low in price and very easy to keep and breed.

The Brazilian red-eared turtle is an aquatic turtle. It likes quiet and fears noise, likes warmth and fears cold, and has strong adaptability to the environment; for example, its tolerance of temperature changes is stronger than that of native Chinese turtle species such as the Chinese pond turtle (Mauremys reevesii) and the yellow pond turtle (Mauremys mutica). The suitable water temperature for growth is 20-32°C, and the optimal growth water temperature is between 25-30°C. Below 20°C it eats less and is less active, below 16°C it begins to enter hibernation, and below 12°C it is in complete hibernation.

In captive breeding, it feeds mainly on meat, especially at the hatchling and juvenile stages, when it mostly takes small fish and shrimp, lean animal meat and so on as its main food; at the adult stage it can also eat plant-based feed (bananas, fruit, etc.) and commercial compound feed. The diet of adult red-eared sliders in the wild includes algae, duckweed and other herbaceous plants floating in the water, dragonfly larvae, small fish, shrimp and other crustaceans, and various mollusks such as snails.

2. How to keep red-eared sliders in autumn?

1. Feeding: increase the nutritional content of the feed, and feed foods high in protein and minerals, such as small fish and shrimp, lean meat, worms, etc.;

2. Environment: keep the turtle tank sanitary, and change the water and clean it in time;

3. Water for keeping: keep the water level at about 2 cm, change the water frequently, and wait for the red-eared slider to naturally hibernate after a period of time.

For red-eared sliders, the most suitable water temperature for growth is 20-32°C, and the feeding temperature is 20-35°C, but their appetite is strongest at a water temperature of 29-32°C. At 36°C they stop eating, at 38°C they become dormant, and they tolerate high temperatures of 40°C. When the temperature drops below 16°C they are in a dormant state, and below 1°C there is a risk of dying stiff.