Reptile & Amphibian Forums

When I got my Pink Bellied Side Neck, the dealer told me it could live with my other turtles. Well, I put it in with the other guys and the other day when I was checking on them, my new turtle was floating headless and tailess in the tank. I took chicken wire and I separated the tank into sections so they wouldn't kill eachother, though they still find ways to climb over it. My Pink Bellied Side Neck was a girl and two of the other turtles were boys and I thought males wouldn't fight females! I'm so confused!!! HELP!!

J.L.

Out of curiosity, how big was the turtle that got killed compared to the others, and what kinds of turtles was it with?
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That's not just a woman; it's a way of life!
-Roland T. Flakfizer

Pink Bellied Side Neck - 1 inch (this is the one that died) RES - 1 inch, Mud turtle - 1.5 inches, Musk turtle - 1.5 inches, cooter - 3 inches...in the beginning they seemed like friends....

J.L.

How big is the tank?

Personally, I wouldn't put anything in with a mud turtle, unless I had a VERY LARGE enclosure. Even then, muds have different lifestyles than the others listed.

Katrina

A 75 Gallon

J.L.

FYI, could it be that the hatchling died on its own and the other turtles just took advantage of a good thing?

Katrina

Maybe so...we had a deer die in our lake and the wild turtles ate it so maybe....

J.L.

How large and what species were your other turtles? Sidenecks rarely attack each other unless there is major size differential. What may have happened was that the sideneck died of other causes (such as an undetected infection) and, once a turtle dies, it is lunch for the crowd.

There are a few vicious sidenecks, however, especially the New Guinea Snapping Turtle, Elseya novaeguinea or its Australian counterpart. I had one that went after an Emydura relentlessly.