This is probably one of the easiest ways to tell the difference between a male and a female red eared slider turtle. Last Updated: November 17, 2020 ", "The concave on the turtles plastron helped a lot! [1] X Research source Reptile Medicine and Surgery. In some species, it's easy to tell male from female turtles just by their body shape. Feel the bottom of your turtle's shell. The next step in determining the gender of your red eared slider is looking at its tail. He is great. Speak with a veterinarian specializing in marine animals to discover which gender your sea turtle is. Also, the female has a tendency to have a higher-domed, more rounded shell, whereas the male has a lower shell with more of an oval or oblong appearance. Differences between male and female Western painted turtles are similar to those of red-eared sliders. However, in order for this method to be successful, both red eared sliders need to be a similar age. It is extremely difficult to sex a baby turtle. The visible characteristics do not form until the turtles mature to at least 4 to 6 inches long. A concave plastron allows for a male turtle to fit over a female’s shell during mating without rolling off. The bottom of a turtle's shell (called the plastron) is also used as an indicator for determining gender in turtles. When the tail is relaxed, the cloaca is situated behind the rim of the shell. While it’s true that size and age are correlated, the size of a turtle is influenced greatly by the quantity of food tha… ", "Using this site, I was able to determine the sexes of my friend's two turtles! Research shows that if a turtle's eggs incubate below 81.86 Fahrenheit, the turtle hatchlings will be male. The next step in determining the gender of your red eared slider is looking at its tail. ", "Thank you wikiHow for helping. Maders. Instead, external conditions such as temperature play a primary factor as to whether they emerge from their egg as a male or female turtle. In the wild, you can watch baby sea turtles less than 2-inches long emerge from their submerged nests and paddle their way across the sand into the waves. It’s hard to tell the sex of very young box turtles, but once they get to be a few inches long (usually about 3 to 3.5 inches), you can start to see the differences between the sexes. Baby sea turtles don't have x or y chromosomes that determine their gender. Also check the turtle’s cloaca, which is the small hole located under the tail. Male and female red eared sliders have slightly different tails. A turtle will have rings whether in captivity or the wild. Typical plastron lengths for mature males are between a little less than 3 inches and a little less than 4 inches. It's hard to determine the gender of a baby painted turtle (Chrysemys picta). Taking care of a female turtle that is about to lay eggs is not very hard, you barely have to do anything, so don’t worry about this part. Female turtles have a short tail, which generally doesn’t extend more than 10 cm (4 inches) past the edge of the carapace. If you keep pet turtles, it's nice to know if you've got boys or girls. Although females dig in the sand to bury their eggs, males need their long claws to defend a territory and gain traction when mating with a female. Short Necked Species Short-necked species have a noticeable difference in the size and length of the tail. I have used kiddy pools and plastic pond liners from most nurseries and now a 150 gal pond. Remember 10 gallons for every inch of turtle. We know ads can be annoying, but they’re what allow us to make all of wikiHow available for free. Examine all the signs mentioned in the article; if the majority of them point to a male, it is most likely a male. Since 1975, the FDA bans selling baby turtles less than 4-inches long. Please help us continue to provide you with our trusted how-to guides and videos for free by whitelisting wikiHow on your ad blocker. Flow of urine: The flow of urine can sometimes be spotted in a fetus.If it is moving upward, then it is more likely a boy. The carapace differs a little more between the male turtle and the female turtle. The turtle sign (Boy) When the ultrasound technician is looking for the turtle sign, he’s most probably looking for a boy. You have to wait for these characteristics to develop before you can determine their gender and you cannot easily distinguish the sex of a RES that is less than 4 inches in length.The rough estimations for captive RES are: 2-4 years for males with a SCL of 4" and 3-5 years for females with a SCL of around 5". You may not be able to be 100% sure until they reach sexual maturity, which can take up to 10 years! There are some variations of sea turtles (specifically, the Kemp Ridley, but there may be others) that have no external signs of which gender they are. The Red-eared Slider species particularly shows a pronounced difference between the male and female front claws. If you notice that your turtle has much longer claws you can safely say it’s … She graduated from the University of Glasgow in 1987 with a degree in veterinary medicine and surgery. The female’s flatter plastron gives her more room internally in which to grow eggs. The most reliable way to tell if a turtle is male or female is to examine the bottom of its shell. TO START Cause if they live you’ll need 100 … If you only have one turtle, then look for as many clues as possible to try to determine the turtle's gender. On males, cloacal openings typically extend past the end of the carapace while in females, they're closer to the base of the tail. Sea turtles live up to 165 years. If not, have a friend or family member who is experienced with turtles visit to help you. If it curves in slightly, it's a male. Checking shells was the first thing I did when I got my turtles! His/her shell is flat, its front claws are shorter then its back ones, and its "opening" is not right under the shell. Thank you!! Pretty easy steps to follow. His name is Mr Bently. Yes, since they are actually atatched to the turtle, unlike hermit crabs (who switch shells as they grow), their shell grows with them. Looking at the bottom of the tortoise’s shell you will immediately be able to tell the difference between a male and female given that on males it will be concave (meaning it goes inward). Be aware that you might have to wait years until your turtle is fully grown and you can determine the gender effectively. Males (above) have a large, thick tail. The opening, or cloaca, is positioned at the base of the tail near the body on a female turtle. You could also take a photo of your turtle and visit/email a pet store or a university biology department and ask them to identify the species for you. Dec 20, 2016: Turtle's by: Susan My grandson found this baby turtle where he was fishing he brought it home.the turtle had dirt dryed on it so my daughter took a soft tooth brush and stuck it under the fauet and he or she loved it the turtle lives in a 10 gal tank he seems to like it so to the lady that asked about having s film on its shell try the with the tooth brush The difference between sexes shows mainly in the structure of the tail, and for the male snapper the tail is longer, thicker (2), and the vent is … This part of the turtle’s shell – plastron will be very different in both male and female turtles. This article was really helpful. When you do this, you're checking for a specific sandpaper-like roughness that male soft-shell turtles have. ", "Learned that if the turtle shell is long, it's a male, and if small, female. But take it to a vet or your local pet store where you bought it and ask them to confirm. Look at the colour of the turtle. But it's not easy to tell a baby sea turtle's gender as they aren't sexually mature until around 10 years old. If the cloaca is closer to the shell than the tip of the tail, the turtle is likely female. Not only, "I've had my turtle almost 10 years, and didn't know if it was male or female. Follow The Carapace. You should be able to, though certain things you may not be physically able to see depending on its size. Tortoises live up to 185 years if given proper care. ", "This website was very useful and helped me add a new member to the family. If you still cannot determine the gender of your turtle, you can always ask a specialist at a pet store or a fish tank store--or wherever you bought your turtle at. (This turtle looks like a female.) Now today we, "Now I know how to do it. An adult female turtle has a slightly longer shell than an adult male has. Female turtles have a short tail, which generally doesn’t extend more than 10 cm (4 inches) past the edge of the carapace. If the turtle’s cloaca, the orifice in which its sex organs are located and through which it excretes waste, is located halfway between the turtle’s body and the tip of its tail, it is probably male. If the eggs incubate above 87.8° Fahrenheit, however, the hatchlings will be female. A large tank is ideal for all turtles as it gives the pet room to play, explore and burrow. While you can count rings on the turtle's belly, that method is often a better representation of when the turtle had food and when it didn't. Temperatures that fluctuate between the two extremes will produce a … Look at the size of your map turtle compared to the size of another Mississippi map turtle. As a means of sexing the turtle, this method is limited because you need to make sure that the turtle is fully grown. Photo: MrHicks46. The concave shape helps him balance on the female turtle during mating. ", "I thought the only way you could determine their sex was by the tail, but I guess I was wrong. When, "By a lake we are at there is a snapping turtle, and the family wanted to know what gender the turtle was. ", this article, and now I know that I have a nice, healthy female turtle which I have named Scarlett. This article is very informative and useful. Florida Atlantic University: Is it a Boy or a Girl? Unlike other tortoise species, Russian tortoise males do not have a concave plastron. Taking a look at this part of the shell is often the easiest way to tell a tortoise's sex. If it curves in slightly, it's a male. I might try to hand feed it with lettuce and build an outdoor arena now that I know. It seems much more fun to know to handle my turtle, and I know much more than I did. Male turtles tend to have larger and wider tails than females. The male's cloaca is longer and more slit-like. Thank you for your help! However, if your pet’s shell length is more than 4 inches, then you need a bigger tank. What does the shell look like for a male and female? Once you've completed each of these three tests, you should know the sex of the turtle. Freshwater species such as red-eared sliders are often sold at pet stores when they reach four inches in size. Here are Some Tips All New Turtle Keepers Need to Know. Sagittal sign: If the caudal notch is pointing upward at more than a 30-degree angle, then the fetus is a boy.If it is somewhere in between, it may be harder to make a definitive determination. If the underbelly does not have blue coloring, it's a female. Certain turtles can live up to 85 years. We use cookies to make wikiHow great. wikiHow is where trusted research and expert knowledge come together. The turtle’s shell, or carapace, differs slightly between male and female. wikiHow marks an article as reader-approved once it receives enough positive feedback. So to be able to find out you will have to wait for the turtle to reach maturity. ", out my turtle is a male. In some species such as box turtles, the hind claws are thicker and more curved on the male. For instance, if the turtle had 14 rings, you can guess that the turtle is 7 years old, as every 2 rings may represent a year. Eventually, however, curiosity prevails and they want to know. ", did this article help us today, but it will also help in the future. ", "You really taught me how to identify the gender of my Malayan snail-eating turtle. It is located in the last third of the tail, towards the tip. However, there are no useful or consistent differences in the shell between the genders when it comes to telling male from female. Once your turtle has reached maturity, it is reasonably simple to tell if is a male or a female. Dr. Elliott, BVMS, MRCVS is a veterinarian with over 30 years of experience in veterinary surgery and companion animal practice. However, after reaching sexual maturity male sea turtles develop a long tail, which houses the reproductive organ.The tail may extend past the hind flippers. but i … Now I named her Truffles. By using this service, some information may be shared with YouTube. The body shape of males and females is roughly the same, with small non-gender-specific differences from one animal to the next that are due to the different subspecies and environmental factors. Considering these turtles live to 20 years or more, they are still babies but are well on their way to developing telltale sexual traits. Male turtles have a concave (curved in) plastron while females have a flat one. A male's opening is found further toward the tip of the tail. The female's shell is smooth all around. 4D is dependent on foetal position and amniotic volume. {"smallUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/4\/4d\/Tell-If-a-Turtle-Is-Male-or-Female-Step-1.jpg\/v4-460px-Tell-If-a-Turtle-Is-Male-or-Female-Step-1.jpg","bigUrl":"\/images\/thumb\/4\/4d\/Tell-If-a-Turtle-Is-Male-or-Female-Step-1.jpg\/aid9847-v4-728px-Tell-If-a-Turtle-Is-Male-or-Female-Step-1.jpg","smallWidth":460,"smallHeight":345,"bigWidth":728,"bigHeight":546,"licensing":"

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Specializing in marine animals to discover which gender your sea turtle species yields ambiguous.! Has reached maturity then it 's nice to know them to … Rub the tend!