I have 2 red ear slider turtles. Why does the large one shake its front legs in the little ones face??

Question

The larger one has long fingernails and a thick tail while the smaller one has short nails and a short skinny tail. The only times they do this is while they are in the water. They have shown no signs of aggression towards each other. They live happily in a 55 gallon tank where about a quarter of the tank is land with a sunning lamp. How can you tell how old they are?? Will they lay eggs? Do I need to have their tank set up a special way?

Answer 1

Just an FYI to some other posts- turtles do not live in social structures and do not do much in the way of pecking orders.

The 'flutter' is used as a mating ritual, and can be used to bully smaller turtles, especially if the tank is too small.

Normally, a 55 gallon would be OK for a couple turtles, but if 1/4th is land space, then the water space is only about 35-40 gallons- a bit skimpy for an adult and a smaller turtle.

So... if the smaller one is under about 4", it is not yet old enough for mating, but the bigger one will usually try the 'dance' with ANY potential mate. If the potential mate does not respond correctly then nothing happens.

Answer 2

The larger of the two is the female and the little dance they do is a mating dance. If they are doing this you have the right conditions already but don't count on them laying eggs. Do a little research on turtle reproduction and the requirements you need!

Answer 3

It's a mating 'dance' the male does to entice the females into mating. Usually done in water while both of them are swimming.. You only mentioned sized differences and not gender differences. Even if both of them are males, the larger one might still do the same because he has reached sexual maturity and the smaller one has not.

Answer 4

Does the big one have long toenails and the small one have short ones? This is a mating ritual! Long toenails are the easiest way to identify a male RES. Although, they've been known to make similar advances to another male if only two males are in the tank!

http://www.redearslider.com/
http://www.austinsturtlepage.com/Care/caresheet-red_ear_slider.htm

Answer 5

Judging by the way you said 1 has longer nails and a larger tail its an obvious attempt at territorial dominance being laid down by an older turtle trying to estabish a social pecking order

Answer 6

The large one has long toenails?? Does it? Well, if its a male, its a mating dance to enchance females to get to love the male more than the others.

Answer 7

its a little known fact that red ear slider turtles are among the few reptiles that know sign language. the shaking of the front legs in turtle language means "we are getting out of here first chance we get" if the little one winks then he is agreeing with the escape plan..if he shakes his back legs he is not wanting to go along. be careful not to accidently get a piece of rope or something into their cage as they will use it as an escape tool. good luck.

Answer 8

mating dance. or the big one is showing whos the boss. better separate them if the big one is too big for the small one.....

Answer 9

Staking territory....giving off hormones i mean phermones. The laws of nature.....