How do I know how old my Red Eared Slider is?

Question

We found out red eared slider in our road. No one claimed it, so we kept it. We are pretty sure it is a male, given the claw length, but we have never compared it to a female. Also, how would I measure the shell to know how much more it will grow and to see how old he (or possibly she) is?

Answer 1

Claw length isn't a good determinate of sex in turtles....or at all for that matter. Your best bet is to check tail length instead. males have longer tails than the female (the tail, when pulled against the body can almost reach the back legs if it's a male).

As far as age goes, rings on the shell aren't real accurate either because depending on what kind of area it's lived in it's whole life, they can be worn away, etc. Sadly, there is no real accurate way to tell with just about any turtle or tortoise. The best I can give you is a ballpark estimate. If the colors are duller, it's large, and it looks like the feet and/or shell have had some wear and tear, it's probably an older animal.... but that can still be anything within a 20 year span.

Answer 2

Measuring the shell won't be an accurate way to determine the age because the turtles will grow at different rates depending on a number of factors (temperature, diet, genetics, wild/pet). If the claws are long, you probably right in believing that have a male. Male RES get to be 8-9" long (average) compared to 11-12"+ for a female.

See the following websites for more info on RES:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trachemys_scripta_elegans
http://www.anapsid.org/reslider.html

And this one for ageing turtles:
http://www.turtlecare.net/age.htm

Answer 3

It is immpossible to know accuratly, but don't take the advice of counting the rings on its shell because healthy turtles often grow multiple rings in a year. I would say APROXIMITLY: shell length = 5-8 cm its a baby, from about 2 to 5 its 10 cm and up, and I've heard that the avrege for a 15 year old;s shell is about pie-plate size.

Answer 4

It is illegal in the U.S. for pet stores to sell any turtle that is less than four inches (10.6 cm) in length (this is problematic for those few turtle species whose full adult size is 4" or less!). The ones sold legally must be at least four inches long from the neck end of the carapace (top shell) to the tail end of the carapace. If male, it will be somewhere between 2-4 years old and already sexually mature. Wild females reach maturity later, between 5-7 years, and will then be over 5 inches (12.7 cm) in length; in captivity, females may reach maturity at about 3 1/2 years. You will be able to tell male from females: males are smaller than females in overall body size but have longer tails.

Answer 5

Sexing IS partially done by foreclaws in RES and similar species, but there is no good way to know the age.

The adult size of a male is around 9-10" usually. Pet turtles can hit adult size far quicker than the 5-7 years it takes in the wild.

For purposes of curiosity, count the main rings on several differnet scales (scutes) on the belly (plastron). It ain't perfect, but it is good enough for sheer curiosity.

Answer 6

I have two myself, great animals. most of the people are right, you can check the length of the tail, claws or shell, but the only true way is to take it to the vet. search the web about RES there is a couple you can choose from.

Answer 7

many pink eared slider turtles can very particularly stay upto 65years of age and older with the splendid care so yours is fullyyt a splash infant on the 2d it maximum probable has a minimum of yet another sixty two years of existence

Answer 8

I saw on a show once that if you count the number of ring on his shell that's how old it is, kind of like counting the rings in a tree. Don't know if that was for a particular kind of turtle, but hey, maybe it's for all!