Turtles are becoming popular pets nowadays.
One of the many species of turtles that has become popular pets is the soft shell turtle.
Although these turtles are aggressive, they still make great pets.
From their name, you will know that their shells are soft and you will recognize them through a flat body giving them a "pancake" look.
If you want to have them for pets, you must know first how to take care of them.
It is under the family Trionychidae.
There are almost thirty species of these turtles.
Some of these species are Apalone ferox also known as Florida soft shell turtle, Apalone spinefera, Apalone mutica, Apalone spinifera emoryi and Trionyx axenaria.
Most of them thrive in fresh water like streams, ponds, rivers and lakes.
They like rivers with slow moving waters and the bottoms are muddy or sandy.
They also tend to live in colonies.
They relax on large rocks or sand bars that is near the water.
They love hiding under the sand and mud and can stay there for five hours.
Usually, they breed in the month of May and lay the eggs between June and July.
The female ones create nest by digging on the sand bars.
As what its name says, soft shell turtles have shells without scales that are common to most turtles.
Its shell is like a leather and bendable with solid bone under it.
Their bodies are oval in shape, flat and have flexible soft shells.
The color of their shells matches the color of the sand making them hard to see.
They stay under the sand and let their snouts or heads to pop out.
Their long necks let them breathe even when they are hiding.
Adult soft shell male turtles have shells that are brown or gray color and have dashes and dots on the back and females have dull color with dark marks.
These type of turtles are carnivorous.
Their diet includes insects and small fishes.
Oftentimes, the diet of the turtle depends on their type of species.
Turtles with powerful and long necks allow them to hold to hold to their prey till it dies.
Aside from fishes, they also eat specific plant material and carrion.
They also eat crustaceans, some amphibians, caterpillars and worms.
Soft shell turtles are great display animals.
However, they are delicate and they need extra care when planning to have them as pets.
They have soft covering that can be damaged easily by bites and scrapes.
Their tank should be filled with sand enough to bury them and they should be kept in an area that is low in house traffic and noise.
The water should be kept clean using proper water filtration since they are susceptible to diseases.
These are the basic information about soft shell turtles.
If you want to know more about their health, diet and reproduction, you can make little search over the internet.
Remember that these turtles make great pets if fed and cared for properly.