Impact of invasive exotic animals on native reptiles and amphibians -- Slider turtle

Another reptile that has been introduced throughout the temperate and tropical parts of the globe is the slider turtle (Trachemys scripta). Once enormously popular in the United States as pets, millions were sold until the Food and Drug Administration banned the sale of turtles under four inches because they transmitted the disease salmonellosis. The pet trade then shifted overseas and now, 3-4 million are exported annually to Europe and Asia. Breeding populations have been established in Japan, Germany, Israel, South Africa and even the Mariana Islands (Ernst et al., 1994). In several of these areas sliders are considered pests that compete with native aquatic turtles, although no data are available to substantiate this claim (Luiselli et al., 1997).

SOURCES

• Ernst, C. H., J. E. Lovich, and R. W. Barbour. 1994. Turtles of the United States and Canada. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, D.C. 578 pp.
• Luiselli, L., M. Capula, D. Capizzi, E. Filippi, V. T. Jesus, and C. Anibaldi. 1997. Problems for conservation of pond turtles (Emys orbicularis) in central Italy: is the introduced red-eared turtle (Trachemys scripta) a serious threat. Chelonian Conservation and Biology 2:417-419.