Florida Softshell Turtle Diet
For instance the florida softshell turtle can weigh over 40 pounds and reach over 2 feet long requiring a large area to swim.
Florida softshell turtle diet. They hunt and chase down prey as well as scavenge. While most turtles have hard shells composed of scutes the florida softshell has a cartilaginous carapace covered in leathery skin. The kind of softshell turtle you choose will determine the size of tank you need. The florida softshell turtle is a species of american freshwater turtles and is one of the 26 species of turtles found in florida.
The florida softshell turtle is a large turtle with a flattened pancake like body a long neck an elongated head with a long snorkel like nose and large webbed feet each with three claws. They burrow into the mud near a bank or shore extending the snout to the surface for air and wait for frogs. Their primary hunting method is ambush and they will bury themselves below the surface of the mud or sand and wait for small animals or fish to pass by. At roughly half that size the spiny and smooth softshell turtles are more manageable as pets.
It is the only species of a softshell turtle whose range spans the entire florida peninsula. They are the largest of the new world softshell turtles with the most old world characteristics of the old world like its longitudinally wrinkled carapace tolerance for brackish water and relatively large size. Housing the softshell turtle. Florida softshell turtle diet.
Florida softshell turtles are native to the southeastern united states.
