I'm no expert on aquatic turtles but have owned Ouachita? map turtles before. They are considered cold water turtles, but i've noticed that they are active in both hot (100f) and cold (30f) weather. The ones I had were very picky eaters and would not eat a lot in one sitting, compared to the common snappers I had at about the same size range.

First, I would put them in a kiddie pool or something a little larger than an aquarium. They are very good and very fast swimmers. So, they need a lot of space. Also, put in a place to bask and maybe some plants for hiding. I used water hyacinth and a brick in the middle of a small pool.

As far as feeding goes, if you want to try a commercial product, use reptomin. I've tried wardleys and several others, and hardly any of my turtles would even try them. Also, offer them some fresh greens and fruit once a week or so, along with a cricket, earthworm, mealworm, pieces of raw shrimp or fish, or cooked chicken or turkey. You might wanna even put a few live minnows in the enclosure.

Don't be discouraged if they don't eat a lot of meat, or right away for that matter. Mine only occasionally ate worms or crickets, mainly eating reptomin and occasionally biting on some of the fruit of veggies, by their own personal choice.

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• Map turtles...any tips/info!!?? - LucyD, Mon Nov 28 11:03:41 2005
• RE: Map turtles...any tips/info!!?? - LucyD, Tue Dec 6 10:17:04 2005
• RE: Map turtles...any tips/info!!?? - Malakai, Wed Dec 7 11:46:07 2005