Turtles are oviparous creatures which means that they do in fact lay eggs. However they lay eggs with little or no embryonic development within the mother. This is the reproductive method of all turtles, along with most other reptiles.

All turtles lay eggs on land, and for many species this requires a lot of hard labor. During the egg laying process the mother turtle digs a pit and lays many eggs in a “nest” or byu burrowing them into the sand so that they are hopefully well hidden from predators. The mother turtle then returns to the water (if she is an aquatic turtle).

The hatching turtles have what is known as an “egg tooth” at the end of their beaks that helps them break open their eggs when it is time for them to hatch. Later they lose this tooth. For turtles that reside in the water, the process of reproducing can be very exhausting as it requires the mother turtle to drag themselves ashore, dig a pit, lay the eggs, and then drag themselves back to the water.

Once the aquatic baby turtles hatch they follow the light of the moon to walk out to sea. Many die during this process because they get lost or confused due to all of the artificial light sources we humans have created near the water, such as hotel lights, etc. They mistake it for the moon’s light and end up getting hurt or eaten by predators.

Turtles can feel throughout their shells however their shells are covered in a layer of keratin (similar to fingernails). However something to consider is that turtles can tell when something is touching their shell, and they generally do not like it. This can cause some turtles to act aggressively.

Turtles also do not have nerve endings in their shells but touching it causes a shift in the tissues that keep it attached to their bodies. This can be compared to the way you cannot feel your hairs or fingernails being touched but rather them being pushed or pulled from the tissues that they are rooted in.

Basically turtles are able to feel through their shells but they will not feel a lot of sensitivity during it. Sensation does transmit through the turtle’s shell however for many this is a sensation that they would prefer to avoid. Some turtles do however enjoy being scratched in the joints between their scutes, especially when they are growing.

Turtles do have ears, however unlike most other animals they do not have “outer ears” that stick out of the side of their heads. This is probably why many believe that turtles do not have ears since they are not easily visible.

Turtles have “inner ear” mechanisms that other animals have. They also have the auditory nerve and brain center that is required to hear. The outer ear gathers sound vibrations which makes them louder. What this means is that turtles do not hear airborne sounds, however they do sense and interpret vibrations within their environments. Hearing isn’t as important to turtles as they have very keen sense of vision and smell. The brain center for hearing in a turtle is quite small in comparison.

A turtle has 3 ears. Two which are internal located on the sides of their head (small holes) and one on their nose.

Turtles are cold blooded reptiles whose body temperature changes with their surroundings. It is for this reason that they do indeed require a heating lamp. All turtles require a good All UV spectrum light in order to keep their water temperature somewhere between 75 top 95 degrees Fahrenheit, it is for this reason that a good water heater is also a must. Turtles are unable to digest their food properly when their surroundings are less than 75 degrees.

Keeping a heating lamp, a basking area, and a water heater are all crucial to a turtle’s health and well being. Leaving a heat lamp or UV light on for 8 to 12 hours a day and turning it off at night should be enough to keep your turtle’s body and tank at the proper temperatures.

Although turtles like most other reptiles do not have vocal chords, they are still able to make several noises both voluntarily and involuntarily. For instance, turtles have been known to make involuntary noises such as hissing when they jerk their heads into their shells. This happens because it forces air in the lungs to escape in order to make more room for the turtle.

As far as making noise voluntarily goes, it is quite common for a turtle to do so during battle, courtship, mating and egg-laying. Most turtle noises are hisses; however turtles have also been known to make noises that include grunting, hooting and clucking.

What is even more interesting as far as sound goes is that turtles do not have outer ears. They have inner ear structures but do not necessarily respond to noise. Rather, they respond quickly to vibrations that they pick up through their shells or limbs.

It is common for turtles to hiss when they feel startled, threatened, or bothered. They may also hiss when being territorial towards other turtles, and at predators. Some pet owners have even said that their turtles sometimes make a moaning sound if they are hungry and want to be fed. This moaning noise has been described by some pet owners similar to that of a dog whimpering in kind of a high pitched way. Imagine something along these lines “ummmm, ummmm.” Other pet owners have described similar sounds as being due to respiratory infections. It is always a good idea to double check with a veterinarian to make sure that this isn’t the case with your turtle.

Turtles should never really make any noise when breathing. If this occurs it most likely means that your turtle is ill with some kind of airway or respiratory infection or illness. In this case a veterinarian that is knowledgeable of reptiles should be consulted immediately.

Broccoli and other vegetables that are members of the brassica family such as cabbage, bok choy and brussel sprouts should always be avoided and never fed to your turtle as they are problematic when given to turtles, especially when given in excessive amounts.

When fed excessive amounts of things such as broccoli, turtles usually get kidney disease and goiter. Things such as turnips, soybeans, radishes, and rapeseed also contain goitrogens that can lead to disease so they are better off avoided altogether or fed very sparingly. However one thing to note is that it has been suggested that the addition to kelp in a turtle’s diet has been known to possibly reverse the goitrogenic effect that the brassicas have on the turtle’s body.

Both aquatic and terrestrial turtles have similar feeding habits although aquatic turtles prefer to eat meat when they mature. Older turtles eat less meat because they require less protein. Variety is the main key to your turtle’s diet. Calcium is another important key.

If your turtle is hungry and the only thing you have in the house is broccoli, it will not necessarily harm your turtle to eat it just this once or on rare occasion, but it is best to not let it become a habit as it is bad for your turtle’s overall health in the long run.

Whether or not a turtle can hide in its shell or not is dependent upon the particular species, its lifestyle and its habitat. Sea turtles for example have a light streamlined shell that is covered with leathery skin. Freshwater turtles have a hard shell but in some species if they are smaller they may be too small to protect their entire body. Land turtles and tortoises are equipped with hard, domed shells, which they rely on largely for protection from predators.

Many turtles as well as tortoises are indeed able to pull in all four legs and their heads to hide in their shell. Their shells protect them from predators and also help them feel safe if they were feeling threatened or in danger before retreating into their shell. When a turtle pulls its head into its shell for protection its neck either folds to the side or into a vertical S shape, and the skin of the neck also bunches up. Which is where the term turtleneck came from.

With many species of turtles the outer skin of the legs is hard, rough and in some tortoises is also armored giving the turtle more protection. Aquatic turtles usually dive into water when they are feeling threatened. Their skin is much softer and equipped with fewer protective scutes. For some species of turtles that lack a good hard shell for armor from predators, they use their legs or the claws between their toes as means of defending themselves.

Some turtles are not only able to hide in their shells, but also able to close their shell, which provides them with additional protection against predators. There is a hinge across the bottom of these particular species of turtle’s shell known as the plastron. This hinge can close the front and the rear and keeps the turtle well concealed inside the shell.

The muscles that hold a turtle’s shell are very tough and after the hinge (plastron) is shut there is no way to open it back up without causing harm to the turtle. There are certain species of tortoises that are also able to close their shells. Tortoises such as the hinge-back tortoise have a hinge across the top of their top shell known as the carapace and are able to close in the back legs as well for protection.

It is to the turtle’s advantage that they are able to hide in their shells, however even though their shells are made of bones they are still quite vulnerable. Predators are actually even able to chew and break open the shell. A larger bird of prey can pick up a small turtle and drop it on rocks below to break the turtle’s shell like a person would crack an egg. A turtle’s shell can also protect it from a small and fast moving wildfire, however larger and hotter fires will most definitely kill a turtle or tortoise that is trapped in it. Domestic pets such as dogs have been known to make turtles into chew toys, which usually ends in disaster for both parties as it can kill or severely harm the turtle and also poison the dog as many species of turtle’s skin is toxic if ingested.

Turtles do not have teeth. Instead they have beaks. A turtle’s beak catches, holds, and slices food. Turtles are born with a tooth referred to as a “hatchling tooth” or “egg tooth” that they use to break open their eggs during the hatching process; however they lose this tooth soon after they hatch.

Their jaws also are equipped with horned ridges which basically serve the same function as teeth. Carnivorous turtles have sharp ridges, whereas herbivorous turtles have more of a serrated design.

Although turtles do not have teeth, the power that their mouths can put forward should not be underestimated. If a turtle bites you, you will definitely believe that they have teeth, as their bite can be just as painful as any creature with teeth, if not more painful.

Turtles are able to eat grapes although it is advised not to feed grapes to your turtle on a regular basis. Turtles should only be fed grapes every now and then on rare occasions or not at all. What a turtle can and cannot eat, or likes to eat and does not like to eat really also just depends upon the species of turtle. For instance, green sea turtles are largely vegetarian and primarily are known to consume sea grasses, while other species of sea turtles are mainly carnivorous and prefer to feast upon jellyfish, crabs, fish, sea urchins, barnacles and sponges.

Some land tortoises are vegetarian and will spend part of their day grazing and foraging. Box turtles are omnivorous creatures and will eat a little bit of anything you throw their way or that they can come across in the wild. These creatures also consume a lot of worms, bugs, and plant materials. Water turtles begin life as carnivores and then as they mature begin to consume more and more plant material until they are basically omnivorous creatures.

Correctly feeding your pet turtle begins with knowing what kind of species you own. If you are unsure of this you should check an atlas, book, or consult a veterinarian that knows a lot about reptiles, or a knowledgeable herper or breeder to help you properly identify your species of turtle. Once you know what kind of turtle you own, feeding it becomes a lot easier.

As mentioned above, turtles are generally not very picky eaters and most love to eat fruits such as grapes. However these should only be given to them as treats on rare occasions because they are very high in sugar content and are also poor in minerals. They have an incorrect calcium phosphorous ratio, and it is for this reason that they should only be offered to a turtle as about 5% of its diet or less. Tortoises have been found to love grapes. In fact, red and yellow foot tortoises naturally consume more fruits than other tortoises, so if you are an owner of a tortoise then their portion of fruit in their diet can be increased to about 15% or 20% if desired.

Turtles hibernate in different ways. There are a few things to know about turtles when considering this. The first is that temperature is very important to turtles. This is because these reptiles are ectothermic meaning that they get their body heat from their surroundings. They are able to heat up from the air, water, ground, sun, etc. They need to be warm in order to move around, eat, and stay active. If a turtle gets too cold, everything in its body will begin to slow down and it will render the turtle unable to eat and digest its food. The heart and lungs also slow down when a turtle becomes too cold.

Some turtles live where it never gets cold. They are able to stay active all winter long as the weather is always hot and comfortable for them to live in. However turtles who live in places where it gets cold or snows have a way to keep themselves alive, they can and do hibernate. Some people do not use the word hibernate when referring to this process that the turtle goes through, rather they refer to it as “brumate”. Brumating is what reptiles do. Mammals hibernate. However most people will continue to use the word hibernate anyways when referring to turtles simply because it is the word that most have become used to.

Different species of turtles “brumate” or “hibernate” in different ways. For instance, most aquatic turtles will go deep into a pond and snuggle down into some mud and leaves located at the bottom of the water. Them they allow themselves to get cold. This causes their bodies to slow down so that they do not need to eat anymore. Their hearts will slow down as well and start to beat only once every few minutes. They stop breathing through their lungs. Because their bodies are running at such a slow speed they no longer require the need for much oxygen, however they do still get some.

Turtles are able to get small amounts of oxygen during this process from the water. The water that the turtle submerges itself in sinks in through the turtle’s specialized skin cells that are located just inside the tail opening. They breathe this way, through their tails. Aquatic turtles are able to stay this way for two to three months.

Box turtles do not stay in water much and for this reason do not hibernate under water. However box turtles and other turtles that stay on land most of the time are able to hibernate. They do so by digging deep burrows into the ground. They dig as deep as they can and then hide in the burrow for protection from the cold weather.

When turtles are hibernating, they are constantly in danger. This renders them unable to run away from predators that may come along, find them and want to eat them. This is why turtles often try to seek a place that will be safe from predators such as dogs and/or raccoons.

Another potential danger to turtles during the hibernation or “brumation” process is possibly freezing to death. For aquatic turtles, if the water in the pond freezes and reaches all the way down to the bottom of the pond where the turtle is hibernating, they will freeze to death.

If the ground freezes deeply around a hibernating box turtle or other species of land turtle, they to will most likely freeze to death. However, this does not usually happen very often. If a pond is deep, only the top part usually freezes over solid and there is usually water underneath the ice. In this case the turtles will be safe. Box turtles and other land turtles are usually safe as well because the top layer of the ground often freezes however the turtles try to stay deeper down where the dirt isn’t as likely to freeze.

There are thousands of turtles that prepare for the harsh winter months by going deep into the water or digging a deep burrow. These turtles will slow down their bodies and hibernate for as long as the weather is cold. Then when spring comes, they will warm up and become active again. Usually one of the first things a turtle will do after reemerging from hibernation is find a nice warm place to bask in the sun.