Origin
The water turtle is spread over a large area encompassing Europe, Western Asia and North-West Africa.
In Romania, it was spread almost throughout the country, but in relatively small numbers, and today it is less common.
Favorite places of this tortoisare the shores of lakes with rich aquatic vegetation, as well as swampy areas, which are difficult to cross from other animals.
Water turtle feed
She really likes to sit on the water's edge, but at the slightest alarm she throws herself into the water and disappears into her meal. It is a very agile species, moving easily in water, where it normally feeds.
A ferocious carnivore, it awaits its prey by floating among aquatic vegetation. The approaching prey is caught by the Lightning detente of the neck and quickly killed by the repeated movements of the mexilars.
After that, the turtle retreats under the water, where the prey is torn to pieces. The food of these frogs is: crustaceans, terrestrial invertebrates, rodents, even young birds, fish, insects, worms and very rarely, some plant components.
Features water turtle
The European turtle is small to medium - sized, presenting varieties ranging from 15-25 cm. The body format is different depending on the age category, evolving from a relatively round shape in youth, to an oval shape in adult material.
The water turtle's limbs are very strong, column-shaped, with strong and palmate paws, provided with long and powerful claws, in the number of 5 forelimbs and 4 forelimbs. As a peculiarity, we can mention that the claws are joined by an InterDigital membrane, which allows them to move easily in water.
The body is tightly enclosed in a hard, ossified carapace, covered with plaques of a horny nature. The anal plate of the carapace is whole, indistinguishable, the tail short, without a horny ending. On both sides of the tail, on the inner side of the thighs, there is a conical horny tubercle.
The color is very variable, with the shade tissue extending from Brown to black, on the surface of which there are scattered small spots or lines of yellow color. On the head, neck and limbs there are also yellow spots.
Breeding water turtle
This species overwinters on the bottom of waters, from late autumn to early April.
At the end of May or the beginning of June, the female lays 3-16 eggs the size of the pigeon egg, in the floodplains of the Danube Delta, sometimes climbs in Willows and lays the eggs in the loose soil of hollows, but usually on the shore, not far from the water gloss.
Usually, in the fall or even the next spring, the chicks hatch from the eggs, breaking the shell with the help of a hatching tooth of a horny nature, located on the upper jaw.
In captivity, these turtles do not go into hibernation if they are kept at a high temperature (that of the room), but in this case they require careful care from us.
The European water turtle is currently threatened with extinction due to the reduction of natural conditions, pollution, hydrological arrangements and even the cruelty of some people, being protected by law in all countries where it is present.
