What are the common types of turtles? A complete guide

Turtles are one of the common animals of the order Testudines and are ancient reptiles that still exist today. They have very hard shells, and when attacked, a turtle can retract its head, tail and limbs into its shell. Nowadays many friends like to keep turtles as pets, so what are the common turtle species? Below, the editor will introduce them to you.

1. Golden coin turtle

The golden coin turtle is a rare turtle species, also known as the three-striped box turtle, broken-plate turtle, golden-headed turtle, etc. It likes to live in mountain rock crevices or mud burrows near water areas, and after being startled it dives to the bottom of the water. It often goes to mountain streams or moist places to forage for various aquatic animals. In nature it mainly preys on aquatic animals such as snails, fish, shrimp and tadpoles in the water, and also eats young rats, small fish, shrimp, snails, young frogs, scarab beetles, earthworms, snails and fly maggots. It sometimes also eats pumpkin, banana and tender plant stems and leaves, and seeds.

2. Stone coin turtle (yellow pond turtle)

The yellow pond turtle, also called stone coin turtle in the Guangdong-Guangxi and Hainan regions, is the most primitive and ancient variety among water turtles, and among the people it has long been known as the "ancient stone turtle." The yellow pond turtle inhabits hilly areas, mountain stream basins in semi-mountainous areas and river waters. During the day it mostly swims and forages in the water, and on sunny days it likes to be on land. It is omnivorous with a wide feeding range, likes to eat fish, shrimp, shellfish, snails, aquatic plants and other foods, and under artificial rearing it is generally fed fish, shrimp, meat or poultry offal.

3. Yellow-margined box turtle

The yellow-margined box turtle, which is what we usually call the Anhui margin turtle or Taiwan margin turtle, belongs to the semi-aquatic (leaning terrestrial) turtles. Its native range includes Anhui, Chongqing, Fujian, Guangxi, Henan, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Shanghai, Zhejiang, Hong Kong, China, Taiwan, China, and Japan (the Ryukyu Islands). The yellow-margined box turtle is not afraid of people, is beautiful, is also rather clever, has strong interactivity, and is relatively small in size.

4. Annam turtle

In appearance the Annam turtle is extremely similar to the yellow pond turtle. Their differences are as follows: the top of the Annam turtle's head is dark olive, and there is a V-shaped stripe along the front edge that extends to behind the eyes. It is mainly distributed in central Vietnam, and people in Guangdong and Guangxi call it the Vietnamese national turtle.

5. Florida red-bellied cooter

The Florida red-bellied cooter is an aquatic turtle, mainly distributed in the North American continent, and lives in lakes, rivers, ponds and other places. The plastron is generally yellow, sometimes tinged with red, and sometimes with black to reddish-brown patterns whose size and shape are variable. The Florida red-bellied cooter has very high ornamental value, looks bright and fiery, and likes to float on the water surface.

6. Chinese pond turtle

The Chinese pond turtle is also known as the mud turtle, water turtle, mountain turtle, etc. It inhabits rivers, lakes, reservoirs, ponds and other waters. During the day it mostly hides in the water, and when the summer heat is intense it gathers in groups to seek shady places. When it encounters enemies or is frightened, it retracts its head, limbs and tail into its shell. It is omnivorous, feeding on animal foods such as small fish, shrimp, snails and mussels. It has a strong ability to endure hunger, and can go without food for a month without starving to death.

7. Red-eared slider

The red-eared slider is also known as the Brazilian turtle, red-eared turtle, small painted turtle, etc. It is an aquatic turtle with strong adaptability to the environment, and its tolerance to temperature changes is stronger than that of domestic turtle species such as the Chinese pond turtle and the yellow pond turtle. It is omnivorous and can endure hunger. Under artificial breeding it mainly eats meat, especially at the hatchling and juvenile stages, when small fish and shrimp, lean animal meat and the like are the main foods. At the adult stage it can also eat plant-based feed (bananas, fruit, etc.) and worker-formulated feed.

8. Pig-nosed turtle

The pig-nosed turtle is the only species in the genus Carettochelys under the family Carettochelyidae, and is also known as the two-clawed softshell turtle, false softshell turtle, fly river turtle, etc. It is a highly aquatic freshwater turtle that lives in water all year round except when laying eggs, and therefore its limbs are specialized into flipper-like limbs like those of sea turtles. Typical habitats include rivers, estuaries, lagoons, lakes, swamps and ponds. Its diet is very diverse, but it leans carnivorous, eating such things as small fish, small shrimp, aquatic insects, aquatic plants, and fruits and branches and leaves that fall from trees into the water.

The above is an introduction to common turtle species. Most turtles are carnivorous, feeding on worms, snails, shrimp and small fish, and they also eat plant stems and leaves. They are distributed in almost all parts of our country.

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