Turtles appeared on our planet more than 200 million years ago. In those days, in addition to small species, there were huge multi-meter representatives of this detachment (for example, a 2.5-ton archelon, reaching a length of about 5 meters).
They originated in the marine environment and during evolution gradually got out to land. But they did not completely abandon life in water. Nowadays, turtles are both ground (land) and water, live in salty seas and oceans and in fresh reservoirs. The main distinguishing feature of the turtles is the presence of a strong mouth shell, which is necessary to protect against enemies.
Kinds
Pond slider
This type of family of American freshwater turtles has three subspecies: redeared, yellowbellied and a turtle turtle. From the name it is clear that the characteristic external sign of the red-eared turtle is red or orange-yellow spots on the sides of the head. Has an average size, its length of the karapaks does not exceed 30 cm. Widespread on the territory of North and South America.
Chinese trionics (Far Eastern Turtle)
Chinese trionics (another name Far Eastern Turtle) belongs to the family of threehigh freshwater turtles. Widely widespread in Asian countries, as well as in the Far East of Eurasia. These turtles have a round flat shell, covered not with horny shields, but with soft skin. Limbs and karapax are painted in greenish shades of gray and brown colors.
Swamp turtle
Another small representative of freshwater turtles is a European swamp turtle. It reaches a maximum of 35 cm in length, and the mass is about 1.5 kg. It has a dark olive or dark brown color that seems black. Even in the swamp turtle, the tail, reaching ¾ of the length of the shell, is unusually long for the entire turtle detachment. Inhabit Europe, Caucasus, Central Asia, East and North-West Africa.
Caspian turtle
One of the representatives of the family of Asian freshwater turtles is the Caspian Turtle. It is not in large sizes, the length of the shell is usually 30 cm. The upper part of the oval shell is painted in olive color, and the lower one has a yellow tint, often interspersed with black spots. Yellow strips in the longitudinal direction decorate the head, neck and paws of reptile. It inhabit the territory of Europe, the Caucasus, Asia, and also occurs on the Arabian Peninsula.
Ilovy Golovasty Turtle
Ilovaya Golovasty Turtle from the Ilovy Turtle family has modest sizes no more than 10 cm in length. Her shell is brown-green with a yellowish tint. There are ribs in the area of cervical plasticity on Karapaks. The head is quite large and the tail is very small.
Gollystaya tortoise is everywhere widespread in the fresh reservoirs of South America.
Care and content
People love to start animals at home. And it is not always truly domesticated. Turtles are wild animals that are unlikely to answer the owner with warm feelings of mutual love. Nevertheless, they are often chosen as a pet. Animal taming is a great responsibility, and it must be taken consciously. The turtle needs to create all the necessary conditions and quality care.
The water turtle is much more whimsical than a land. The arrangement of its terrarium is more complicated and requires large investments. The volume of the water area should be at least 100 liters, and a third of it will fall on the island-Sushi. The reptile can get out to him in order to bask under the UV lamp. A regular incandescent lamp of 40 or 60 watts for lighting is also placed above the dwelling. The rest of the place in the terrarium is filled with water, which is constantly heated with a special heater.
When purchasing an aquarium-terrarium for a pet, it should be noted that any turtle will grow and increase in size over time. Therefore, do not save and buy a “house” of small size, it is better to choose it with a stock of volume.
How to feed
Feed reptile at least twice a day. The diet of the turtles should be diverse, fullfledged and balanced. The lack of any nutrients in food can lead to various diseases of organs and systems. The diet should also be made taking into account the type of turtle, because there are both predatory and omnivorous water representatives.
The menu of omnivorous reptiles should consist of plant and animal food in a ratio of 50:50. They can be offered algae, fruits, vegetables, salad, chicken meat.
For predatory representatives, the best food will be: lowfat fish, seafood, any liver. Moreover, for turtles, these products do not need heat treatment. Very young turtles should chop the food of a smaller. Fat fish and meat, dairy products, cheeses, sausages and fruits for predatory turtles under the strict ban.
To prevent mistakes in feeding, you can immediately purchase special feeds in pet stores. With the introduction of complementary foods, they are even necessary. If the choice is made in favor of ordinary products allowed to turtles, then it is necessary to add vitamins and minerals to the diet (they can be in the form of drops, tablets, powders, granules).
Diseases
The content of a pet is not only a joy, but also possible problems. They can be associated, including the health of the animal, because they are sick like people. Turtle diseases can affect different organs. Therefore, it is important to pay attention to the appearance and behavior of the turtle. At the first signs of deviations, it is necessary to immediately take treatment measures.
Most often, water turtles have inflammations of various kinds. In particular, otitis media (inflammation of the inner ear), abscesses (areas of inflammation on the limbs), conjunctivitis (inflammation of the eyelids), pneumonia (inflammation of the lungs). The latter is accompanied by symptoms such as flooding on the side, constant sitting on land, wheezing, breath with mouth, pallor of the mucous membranes. In this case, an immediate appeal to a specialist is required.
Often water turtles are concerned about dermatitis caused by fungus and bacterial infections. They affect both the skin (acne, redness, ulcers), as well as the shell (cringing, peeling of shields).
With improper nutrition, turtles appear deficiency of various vitamins and minerals (D3, A, calcium, iron and others). Reptiles are not protected from injuries: bruises, burns, injuries, scratches.
The most important thing for any illness and injuries is timely treatment and prevention.
Reproduction
It is possible to accurately determine the floor of the turtle during puberty (6-8 years), which in captivity occurs several years earlier due to regular nutrition, comfortable conditions and lack of external threats.
The sexually mature male begins his courtship with the fact that he swims to the female and tickles her head with his long claws. The female can lead herself aggressively in relation to the boyfriend, if she does not like his signs of attention. But if she accepts courtship, the male climbs her and performs mating.
During pregnancy, females of water types of turtles spend a lot of time on land, bask, often refuse food.
The female after mating is best kept in a separate watercrarium in the male, so that he does not harm a pregnant friend. About two months later from the date of fertilization, she lays eggs. For these purposes, on an impromptu island, you need to organize a container of sufficient depth with special soil (sand is not suitable for this). Then the turtle burns out eggs, compacts the ground and leaves.
If it happens that the female laid eggs in the water, they need to be removed from there within 2 hours. Otherwise, the embryos will suffocate and die. Eggs after the female leaves should be transferred to the incubator, where, after two months, a turtle will appear from them from them.
Interesting Facts
Turtles have been living on Earth for a very long time. In the process of evolution, they were able to successfully adapt to changeable conditions of nature.
The reptiles of this detachment, living in water, play their important role in various ecosystems and do not cease to surprise the features of their existence. Here are just some of them:
Conclusion
Turtles are an integral part of nature. They take their place in the food chain. Various types of waterfowl are eaten by plant foods and the flesh of other animals: fish, mollusks, jellyfish. The turtles themselves often become victims of predators: in water it is most often killer whales, sharks, and on land to turtle eggs and young people, for example, birds, lizards, foxes do not mind enjoy.
The main enemy of turtles is a person. More than a thousand turtles perish annually from the pollution of the oceans. They get confused in networks, fall under the screws of ships, swallow plastic garbage, taking it as a jellyfish. The problem has accepted a planetary scale, and it must be solved at the global level.
