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There are a variety of turtle species in Central Texas. The two most common species you will see around water are the red-eared slider and Texas river cooter. Map turtles, snapping turtles, Texas tortoises, and many others are also native.

 

Fun Facts

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• All tortoises are turtles, but not all turtles are tortoises.

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• A turtle's shell is part of its body, they cannot come out of their shell.

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• Turtles live a very long time, some over 100 years!

 

Turtle Concerns

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Turtles crossing the road/Misplaced turtles

If a turtle is crossing the road, the best thing you can do it slow down and let it cross. You can also move it across the road in the direction it was headed. Please be careful, they tend to pee when picked up and can bite if you do not pick them up by the sides of their shell. It’s best to wrap them in a towel. Female turtles leave the water every year to lay their eggs and can travel over two miles to do so. Just because a turtle seems far from water, that does not mean it needs to be relocated.

 

Not all turtles are water turtles, so please do not put a turtle in water.

 

Wild turtles should not be pets, please leave them in the wild.

 

Turtles laying eggs

If you come across the turtle laying eggs, please leave her alone. She will dig a hole with her back legs, lay her eggs, and cover them up to incubate, then she will make her way back to the water.

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Injured turtles

Turtles can heal from many shell wounds. If you come across a turtle who has been hit by a car, please bring it in for care and we can try to repair the shell.

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