Florida Turtle Mating Season

Redneck, The Red-eared Slider Turtle
I identify Redneck by the red stripe on his head and the white patch on his carapace (shell).

Its rainy season in Florida and even though it has not rained for a couple weeks rainy season coincides with Florida turtle mating season. Mating season causes turtles to move around more than normal. And, these gentle giants of the reptile world have not evolved an understanding of roads and cars, so they often end up where conditions are very dangerous (or deadly for them).

I rescue sliders daily that are trapped in the middle of busy roads. I take the sliders I rescue to our lake house, where we have several large ponds. There, they are released far from any motorized vehicles that might harm them. The sliders are free to stay in the ponds with others or go to live in the lake. Most quickly transition into Lake Theresa where there is a thriving community of slider turtles.

I hadn't seen Redneck, the red-eared slider, (in the image above; Trachemys scripta elegans), for a very long time, until this week. He comes and goes at will. He is identifiable from the other turtles that hang around by the white patch on his shell clearly visible in this shot. Red-eared sliders are rare in Central Florida. Most sliders are like the recently rescued one below: Yellow-bellied Sliders (Trachemys scripta scripta)

Red-eared Sliders are not native to Florida. They are best known as the pet-shop turtles of our childhood. This (above) is a native Yellow-bellied slider (Trachemys scripta scripta) that I rescued a few days ago. She was quite large and extremely scared. I watched as two cars almost ran over her. Then I stopped in the middle of the road, stopping traffic, and almost got run over myself trying to grab her. Below: My finger for scale.

In summer, sliders need some terrestrial habitat for laying eggs and they often travel some distance searching for new water bodies and terrestrial habitats for reproduction. Its during those periods of travel that they get into trouble with motorized Florida.

Below, another yellow-bellied slider I picked up this week, much smaller than the one above. This female fit in the palm of my hand.

Another slider, in the trunk of my car, below.

A giant slider with my size 12 shoe for scale

🌿Follow Phillip🌱

@majikphil

This slider sat by the pond for a very long time before finally deciding to dive in.

Redneck prefers a diet of cat food, but he will also eat water lettuce plants (Pistia stratiotes).

Is Water Lettuce Native?

Central Florida pond lovers are having trouble finding water lettuce (Pistia stratiotes) this summer. My goldfish and koi prefer this plant to any other aquatic plants found in Florida. In January 2020 Florida sprayed many of the local waterways with herbicides to kill floating plants as boaters find them to be a menace.

So is water lettuce native or imported? It has been reported that William Bartram described and drew the plant, occuring in Lake George, in 1765 when he documented Florida. Still, experts disagree as to whether water lettuce is native to the USA. Regardless, its safe to say the plant is here to stay. I found a few plants in a canal that had not been sprayed with herbicides and transplanted them into ponds with no fish (that would quickly eat them). The water lettuce quickly multiplied and now I have ample supply for both my fish and turtles.

Commonly this floating plant forms large infestations which prevent boating, fishing and other uses of lakes and rivers. While the plant is not on the Florida or Federal Noxious Weed List it is listed as a prohibited aquatic plant in Florida.