Had a bit of a impulse buy today and bought a 3" asian soft shell turtle, the information the LFS gave was sketchy at best and ive found limited stuff on the internet. Can anyone offer any hands on experience with them?
Asian soft shell turtles
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There are two species of Chinese softshells, both Asian species. A. mutica are pale-medium brown, the males with more dark spotting than the females. The A. spinifera spp. are medium brown with darker spots and blotches on their shell?
Like many aquatic amphibians, softshells respire through their skin as well, thus are particularly susceptible to impurities in the water.
Softshells are found in a variety of waters: lakes, ponds, streams, rivers, even ditches. Some species are quite aggressive. They are carnivores and as such are able to render some very painful bites should they be so inclined. In some parts of their range, they are an important food item, especially the larger Asian specimens that may reach 36 inches in length.
Due to their aggressive tendencies, especially if overcrowded, they should be kept single or in pairs. Pairs should be monitored closely to assure that one is not attacking the other; bite marks on the fleshy carapace or plastron are one indicator, and severe injuries have been inflected on their sensitive noses, as well, from aggressive conspecifics.
Aquariums should be established with a thick enough layer of clean fine sand at the bottom to enable the turtle to completely bury itself, what tank is he for CF? The sand should be covered with enough water to completely cover the turtle but not so deep that it cannot extend its neck and get its head above the surface of the water. Water must be kept very clean. softshells are more susceptible to impurities, whether feces or toxins or rotting food, in their water than are other aquatic turtle species.
Like most aquatic turtles, softshells must be able to haul themselves out of the water onto a warm and dry basking area. Basking temperatures of 85° F (warmer for the Florida softshells) are required during the day. Water temperatures can range from 70° to 80° degrees. Basking heat should be provided by an overhead incandescent light. Special UVB fluorescent lighting is not necessary.
In the wild, softshells feed primarily on invertebrates and crayfish, sometimes found scavenging on fish, as well as a variety of aquatic vegetation. Some larger species snag ducks and other small aquatic birds by grabbing them from below. Other species may feed on frogs, tadpoles, mud puppies, snails, molluscs, and worms. In captivity, they can be fed on meats (cook chicken first!) and dog food; turtles greater than 8 inches carapace length should only get low fat/low protein dog foods. An assortment of feeder fish and invertebrates may be offered as well.
Like many aquatic amphibians, softshells respire through their skin as well, thus are particularly susceptible to impurities in the water.
Softshells are found in a variety of waters: lakes, ponds, streams, rivers, even ditches. Some species are quite aggressive. They are carnivores and as such are able to render some very painful bites should they be so inclined. In some parts of their range, they are an important food item, especially the larger Asian specimens that may reach 36 inches in length.
Due to their aggressive tendencies, especially if overcrowded, they should be kept single or in pairs. Pairs should be monitored closely to assure that one is not attacking the other; bite marks on the fleshy carapace or plastron are one indicator, and severe injuries have been inflected on their sensitive noses, as well, from aggressive conspecifics.
Aquariums should be established with a thick enough layer of clean fine sand at the bottom to enable the turtle to completely bury itself, what tank is he for CF? The sand should be covered with enough water to completely cover the turtle but not so deep that it cannot extend its neck and get its head above the surface of the water. Water must be kept very clean. softshells are more susceptible to impurities, whether feces or toxins or rotting food, in their water than are other aquatic turtle species.
Like most aquatic turtles, softshells must be able to haul themselves out of the water onto a warm and dry basking area. Basking temperatures of 85° F (warmer for the Florida softshells) are required during the day. Water temperatures can range from 70° to 80° degrees. Basking heat should be provided by an overhead incandescent light. Special UVB fluorescent lighting is not necessary.
In the wild, softshells feed primarily on invertebrates and crayfish, sometimes found scavenging on fish, as well as a variety of aquatic vegetation. Some larger species snag ducks and other small aquatic birds by grabbing them from below. Other species may feed on frogs, tadpoles, mud puppies, snails, molluscs, and worms. In captivity, they can be fed on meats (cook chicken first!) and dog food; turtles greater than 8 inches carapace length should only get low fat/low protein dog foods. An assortment of feeder fish and invertebrates may be offered as well.
Hmmmmm, dam these impulse buys, no one said anything about a heat lamp being needed, i have made a dry area at the top of the tank where it can rest if it wants but so far apart from the occasional trip to the surface for air it has been happy walking about the bottom of the tank. It is currently living in a 40 gallon tank that i use for growing fish out, it is sharing with the leporanis, silver dollars, juvie snakehead, megladoras and a few other bits and pieces, nothing is big enough to eat it but all are too big to be eaten. I didnt actually plan for what tank it would be going into, i was just going to see how it behaved and how big it got and move it about as nessesary though now i think the best thing to do will be to dig out the glass vivarium i have in the loft and set that up. I probably shouldnt have bought it but the mrs and our son have always loved the FW turtles we've seen but at the £150 each prices we've seen them at ive said no way, this one was only £6 so i couldnt resist.
They are very nice, I was looking into them a while back and when I have room I will be looking out for one and if I find one for that price I will be very happy. I think the aquarium light is fine as far as heat lamps go. Soft shells are almost completely aquatic but you should always provide a resting place above water incase the turtle dose feel the need to surface and bask. Best of luck CF and look foward to seeing some pics.
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