turtle and terrapin? what the difference and best to own?

Answer 1

Here are some sites that may help you:

http://www.sandiegozoo.org/animalbytes/t-turtle.html
http://www.petshub.com/tortoise/terrapin-tortoise-turtle.php
http://animal.discovery.com/guides/reptiles/turtles/which.html
http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?cls=17&cat=1797&articleid=947

Answer 2

Those terms mean different things to different people.

Your basic choices are:
- Sea turtles- terrible pets, and illegal anyway.

- Aquatic turtles- these turtles do not come out of the water often, and generally a bit tricky for beginners. This includes the Fly River Turtle, snappers, soft shells, etc.

- Pond turtles (called 'terrapins' in Europe)- water-living turtles that use basking sites quite a bit- this is the most common pet turtle such as Red-ear Sliders and Painted Turtles. Good pets IF you invest the money for a good set-up.

- Semi-terrestrials- turtles that live mostly on land or in very shallow water. These guys also usually also take a lot of work. Examples include wood turtles, Asian box turtles, 'swamp' turtles, etc.

- Land turtles and tortoises- live almost totally on land, and usually have semi-special needs for tank size, temps, humidity, and diet. These are also popular pets that take some research to keep happy. They include the American box turtles and all true tortoises.

Answer 3

Hello - again. No doubt you are getting sick to the back teeth of me replying...but you will keep posting questions that interest n' facsinate me! ha! ha!

I'm going to surprise you, by NOT giving an answer this time. I don't know if you are asking a general question, or are planning another new addition to your reptile family.

But, as you have just gained a corn snake and a bearded dragon, I personally would not think about anything else for now. At least untill you have gained a bit more experience with keeping reptiles. This is NOT a put down to your future capabilities, but rather a concern that you may be trying to "walk before you can run"

Be patient, enjoy the reptiles you have at the moment, and gain that little bittty extra knowledge with them before taking on another charge!

By all means, look and handle all the reptiles you are allowed to. Talk with like minded reptile enthusiasts. Join a reptutable society (International Herpetological Society), and above all - take things nice and slow! You have years ahead of you yet, and it would be a shame to quit because you've taken on a bit more than you can handle!

Enjoy your reptiles, and good luck

Answer 4

turtles live in the water and terrapins live on land.