Introduction: Hammond was found in the summer of 2015, stuck in a swimming pool in Toronto. He either got stuck after being released or his previous family moved without him as the house had recently been vacated, either way he was abandoned. Yellow-bellied sliders and red-eared sliders, are often purchased as pets, and even Christmas presents, under the pretense that they will only grow to be big enough for their tank. This is a myth as sliders will continue to grow their entire lives and can live to be well over fifty years, growing over 40cm (15.7in) long. Sliders also require regular cleaning otherwise they can carry diseases such as salmonella. Soon realizing the care requirements, many turtle owners no longer want their pet, and end up releasing their turtles into local waterways. Here, they compete with native turtle species, crush bird nests when basking and can introduce harmful pathogens such as ranavirus. Through the pet trade, sliders, once only found in the south eastern United States, can now be found all around the world, becoming invasive. One can help avoid this by being aware when getting a pet turtle, adopting rather than purchasing and if one no longer wants their turtle, finding a new loving home instead of releasing into the wild.
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Invasive: In Europe, sliders have caused problems for the native European pond turtle. Feeding on many of the same foods, pond turtles in the same wetland as sliders have been found to be underweight and had a higher mortality rate, likely due to the slider’s competitive nature. European pond turtles have also been observed trying to mate with sliders, using up energy that should otherwise go to breeding with their own species to help their already dwindling population. Sliders carry parasites such as North American species of protozoans and platyhelminths, varieties that native species like the Mediterranean pond turtle have not developed a resistance towards, causing a number of health problems.
Reproduction: During courtship, the male slider will use his long claws to tickle the side of the female’s face. If she obliges, he will climb onto her back, holding onto the front of her shell, and breed. During this, fluids in the body become pressurized and pumped into the phallic organ causing it to protrude from the cloaca. The phallic organ of turtles does not have an enclosed tubular system like in mammals but instead utilizes grooves to direct the flow of spermatozoon. This particular organ is best described as a large purple flower or mushroom with a gaping mouth on the end not unlike the facehuggers from the 1979 film 𝘈𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘯. The phallus can grow as long 40% of the turtle’s body length. In this species, the male’s body can grow to be ~23cm (9 inches) long.
Sources:
Cadi, A, and P Joly. "Impact of the Introduction of the Red-Eared Slider (Trachemys scripta elegans) on survival rates of the Euroepan Pond Turtle (Emys orbicularis)." Springer Link, Biodiversity & Conservation, Dec. 2004, link.springer.com/article/10.1023/B:BIOC.0000048451.07820.9c?fbclid=IwAR1OX6PHvjFO1Rn-g_w6hmn72FT6EthB-jGPXoHwiOjNpHM3sfKtpv_QJFs. Accessed 7 Dec. 2021. Cotterill, Madigan. "Turtle Dumping: Red-eared Sliders are Invading Native Turtle Habitats in Ontario." Canadian Geographic, 19 July 2020, www.canadiangeographic.ca/article/turtle-dumping-red-eared-sliders-are-invading-native-turtle-habitats-ontario. Accessed 16 Nov. 2021. Jablonski, Daniel, et al. "Attempting Courtship Between Emys orbicularis and Trachemys scripta (Testudines: Emydidae)." Research Gate, Herpetology Notes, Mar. 2017, www.researchgate.net/publication/314458138_Attempting_courtship_between_Emys_orbicularis_and_Trachemys_scripta_Testudines_Emydidae. Accessed 7 Dec. 2021. Larkins, C E., and M J. Cohn. "Phallus Development in the Turtle Trachemys scripta." Karger, 2015, www.karger.com/Article/Fulltext/363631. Accessed 11 Jan. 2022. Meyer, Leon, et al. "Parasite Host-Switching from the Invasive American Red-Eared Slider, Trachemys scripta elegans, to the Native Mediterranean Pond Turtle, Mauremys leprosa, in Natural Environments." North West University, Boloka Institutional Respository, 2015, repository.nwu.ac.za/handle/10394/18819?fbclid=IwAR3g03dpzp18ClgL4ijuBxX_luO6QG-iaQzdyAzSfRKCyuAy-lU94mpyCT0. Accessed 7 Dec. 2021. |