Do You Know About These Dangerous Pet Turtles at Home?

 

This is the Red-eared slider turtle, one of the most popular pet turtles across the world. It is adorable and when you buy, it is so small that it fits into a matchbox. But behind this cuteness lurks something very dangerous. This turtle poses a threat because it is an invasive species.

What Is an Invasive Species?

It is a species that is not native to a specific location, and that has a tendency to spread to a degree believed to cause damage to the environment, human economy or human health.

This issue came to the spotlight when Adithyan D. Thambi, a student in Kalathode, in Kerala, found the turtle while fishing in a nearby canal during last February. His grandfather, Dr. S Sankar an environmental scientist posted this in Facebook and was noticed by Sandeep Das, a researcher at the Kerala Forest Research Institute (KFRI). He alerted Dr. Sankar not to release it back to the waterbody.

Also ‘Red-eared slider turtles are threatening to invade the natural water bodies across Northeast India, which are home to 21 out of 29 vulnerable native Indian species of freshwater turtle’. 

How Does This Turtle Pose a Threat?

Dr. TV Sanjeev, Senior Principal Scientist of KFRI, in a news related to the matter in Asianet News, gives a common example:

‘If all the eggs laid by a housefly were hatched and if all of them turned to houseflies, then the earth would be filled with them within a span of 12 days! If not for the other organisms that consume them’.

So when an invasive species is introduced to an environment, and their numbers increase significantly, it destroys the biodiversity of that place and makes it hard for the native species to survive.

The red-eared slider turtles mature fast and grow rapidly. Their produce a lot of offspring and can live up to 30 years. The problem is here. These turtles pose a major threat to native turtles, rare frogs, fish and can finish off a wide variety of aquatic plants and organisms.

Are They Harmful to Humans?

Yes, they are! These turtles are carriers of salmonella bacteria and cause infection to humans. It can also spread malaria and cause other health issues.  Most people discard these turtles into wells or ponds after they mature. So consuming that water can definitely cause diseases and children playing with these turtles could also be affected.

If They Are Harmful, Why Are They Sold?

Dr. TV Sanjeev says that most of these species introduced through pet trade are usually bought to keep in aquariums. There is a large sale network behind this, Chennai and Tirupati are known to be the largest markets of these slider turtles.

According to Wikipedia, ‘Red-eared slider turtles are the world's most commonly traded reptile, due to their relatively low price, and usually low food price, small size, and easy maintenance’.

Currently in India it is not illegal to keep them as pets or to trade them, although it is illegal to trade them in many places across the globe.

How to Recognize Them?

- These turtles originated in the Mississippi river and Gulf of Mexico, can usually  range from 5-8 inches.

- The most distinguishing feature is of course a long broad red stripe behind its ears.

- Its carapace (outer shell) is yellowish-green or brown or maybe olive green, with yellow stripes running vertically down. They have black blotches on their plastron (bottom part).

- While young they have a green skin but as they grow it usually fades into black.

What Can We Do About Them?

Dr. TV Sanjeev advices that there is an immediate need to contain and control the existing species. Also it is important to avoid the introduction of these species into the terrestrial and aquatic habitats of Kerala. He also pleads the pet traders to refrain from trading invasive species.

The Nodal Centre for Biological Invasions (NC-BI) at KFRI has started a massive survey and restoration efforts to eliminate the red-eared slider turtle from the wild.

If you spot the turtle, you can contact NC-BI at 0487 2690222.

This is a matter of huge ecological concern.

- The red-eared slider is included in the list of the world's 100 most invasive species published by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature.

- In Australia, it is illegal for members of the public to import, keep, trade, or release red-eared sliders, as they are regarded as an invasive species.

- In Australia there are actually turtle dogs which are trained to locate the invasive red-ear slider turtles!

According to Wikipedia, Within the second volume of the Tales of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the popular comic-book heroes were revealed as specimens of the red-eared slider. The popularity of the Turtles led to a craze for keeping them as pets in United Kingdom, with subsequent ecological havoc, as turtles were accidentally or deliberately released into the wild.

All these facts bolster the importance of having an ecological awareness. Most people grow pets but rarely do they try to understand their characteristics or origin. Each one of us have a responsibility to care for nature and to protect and preserve our native species.

Written by - Afra Meera Ahamed

Edited by-  Gunika Manchanda