If you have ever considered having multiple turtles in your tank, you probably have a lot of questions. How do you feed them; will they get along? These are all great questions that must be considered before you decide to get two turtles.
Interestingly, on of the most frequent questions I get asked is if turtles eat each other. That will be the topic of today’s article, and hopefully by the end you will have a good understanding of cannibalism in turtles.
Do turtles eat each other?
While it is not very common, turtles do eat each other. Cannibalism in turtles is usually a result of extreme circumstances.
If you have a pet turtle, you are probably aware that they eat just about anything that is put in front of them. Unfortunately, this can even mean they will eat another turtle if they are desperate enough. While it is not common in pet turtle tanks, cannibalism does occur.
Why do turtles eat and bite each other?
Below are some of the main reasons turtles will eat and bite each other.
Territorial Disputes: If you have multiple turtles living in the same tank, they may start to get protective over their personal space. If they feel like the other turtle is intruding, they may attack them.
Environmental Conditions: If your turtle is not living in a healthy environment, it can cause a lot of stress. This stress can build up to the point to where the turtle becomes aggressive with the other turtles in the tank.
Hunger: As you might expect, intense hunger is another reason why a turtle might eat another turtle. When it comes to survival, a turtle will go after any sort of food source available.
Mating: It is common for a male turtle to bite a female before or during the process of mating. This bite is usually not aggressive in nature and should not result in any blood.
Which turtles are most at risk for fighting and eating each other?
If you have two male turtles in the same tank, there is a greater chance they will fight each other. This is because male turtles are naturally more aggressive towards each other. Your turtles are also more likely to fight if they are different species.
Lastly, if there is a big size difference between your turtles, the bigger one might try to bite and eat the smaller one.
How to prevent your turtles from fighting and eating each other?
There are plenty of ways to help prevent your turtles from fighting and eating each other. I would recommend the following
- Get a turtle divider to help give each turtle their own personal space
- Make sure the temperature of your water is comfortable for your turtles
- Don’t let your turtle tank get too dirty or overrun with algae
- Make sure you are feeding your turtles enough food. It may be best to feed each turtle separately to prevent competition over food.
- Get the biggest possible glass or plastic tub turtle tank possible
