The red-eared slider or red-eared terrapin is a subspecies of the pond slider, a semiaquatic turtle belonging to the family Emydidae. It is the most popular pet turtle in the United States, is also popular as a pet across the rest of the world, and is the most invasive turtle. It is the most commonly traded turtle in the world.
Trachemys is a genus of turtles belonging to the family Emydidae. Members of this genus are native to the Americas, ranging from the Midwestern United States south to northern Argentina, but one subspecies, the red-eared slider, has been introduced worldwide. Species under this genus are commonly referred to as sliders.
The pond slider is a species of common, medium-sized, semiaquatic turtle. Three subspecies are described, the most recognizable of which is the red-eared slider, which is popular in the pet trade and has been introduced to other parts of the world by people releasing it to the wild. Hatchling and juvenile pond sliders have a green upper shell (carapace), yellow bottom shell (plastron), and green and yellow stripes and markings on their skin. These patterns and colors in the skin and shell fade with age until the carapace is a muted olive green to brown and the plastron is a dull yellow or darker. Some sliders become almost black with few visible markings. The carapace is oval with a bit of rounding and a central crest with knobs, but these features soften and fade with age, adults being smoother and flatter. For determining an adult slider's sex, males typically have much longer front claws than adult females, while females usually have shorter, more slender tails than males. Their lifespans range from 20 to 50 years.
The Big Bend slider, also called commonly the Mexican Plateau slider and la jicotea de la meseta mexicana in Mexican Spanish, is a species of aquatic turtle in the family Emydidae. The species is native to the Southwestern United States and northern Mexico.
The Cumberland slider, also called commonly the Cumberland turtle and Troost's turtle, is a subspecies of pond slider, a semiaquatic turtle in the family Emydidae. The subspecies is indigenous to the Southeastern United States.
The Maranhão slider, also commonly known as the Brazilian slider or Carvalho's slider, is a species of turtle in the family Emydidae.
The Hispaniolan slider or Haitian slider is a species of turtle in the family Emydidae found on the island of Hispaniola.
The Central Antillean slider is a species of turtle in the family Emydidae. The species is found on three islands in the West Indies: Hispaniola, Great Inagua, and Puerto Rico.
The Jamaican slider, also known as the Cat Island slider, is a species of fresh water turtle in the family Emydidae. It is found in the Bahamas and Jamaica. As it is not currently found on any of the other surrounding islands in the region, it is assumed that the Jamaican slider was introduced from one of these countries to the other. Even though the popular theory was that these turtles originated from Jamaica, current geological evidence may suggest that they were in the Bahamas long before the native Taíno first went to the Bahamian islands. There is also evidence from archeological sites on San Salvador that the Taíno ate these turtles and transplanted them around the West Indies.
The yellow-bellied slider is a land and water turtle belonging to the family Emydidae. This subspecies of pond slider is native to the southeastern United States, specifically from Florida to southeastern Virginia, and is the most common turtle species in its range. It is found in a wide variety of habitats, including slow-moving rivers, floodplain swamps, marshes, seasonal wetlands, and permanent ponds. Yellow-bellied sliders are popular as pets. They are a model organism for population studies due to their high population densities.
D'Orbigny's slider or the black-bellied slider, commonly known in Brazil as tartaruga-tigre or tartaruga-tigre-d'água, is a species of water turtle in the family Emydidae. The species is found in southern Brazil, northeastern Argentina, and Uruguay. Two subspecies are recognized as being valid, Trachemys dorbigni adiutrix and Trachemys dorbigni brasiliensis.
Trachemys dorbigni brasiliensis, the northern D'Orbigny's slider, is a subspecies of D'Orbigny's slider from Brazil, though validity of this subspecies is disputed. It belongs to the same genus as the pond slider.
Ernodea is a genus of flowering plants in the family Rubiaceae. All species are small shrubs endemic to the Caribbean region, with most species restricted to the Bahamian Archipelago.
The Baja California slider, also known as the black-bellied slider, is turtle in the family Emydidae. It is native to Baja California, Sinaloa and Sonora in Mexico.
The Yaqui slider is a species of turtle belonging to the genus Trachemys of the family Emydidae. It is native to Chihuahua and Sonora in northwestern Mexico.
The Nicaraguan slider is a subspecies of turtle in the family Emydidae. The species is indigenous to Nicaragua and Costa Rica.
The ornate slider is turtle belonging to the genus Trachemys of the family Emydidae. It is found in Guerrero, Jalisco, Nayarit and Sinaloa in western Mexico.
Trachemys callirostris is a turtle in the family Emydidae found in Colombia and Venezuela.
The Cuatro Ciénegas slider, also known commonly as la jicotea de Cuatrociénegas in Mexican Spanish, is a species of turtle belonging to the genus Trachemys of the family Emydidae. The species is native to northeastern Mexico.
The Meso-American slider is a species of turtle belonging to the family Emydidae. The species is distributed from Mexico to Colombia.
