out of curiosity....

[deeleywoman]

in my perpetual intellectual quest for greater authenticity and a closer walk with nature, i am always thinking about what i can do to make my fish tank and turtle tank closer to being a slice of nature- real, region-appropriate plants, decor, etc. in that light, what- if any- creatures would make suitable tank mates for an turtle such as scooter? he's got plenty of snails for company which were intended for food, but he has virtually no interest in them. are there other creatures i could consider adding, such as fish or crabs or something? i've taken walks through and around our marshes and lakes in my time, but i'm just not sure what would be a good idea.

 

[fishy714]

What kind of turtle? How big of a tank?

 

[deeleywoman]

he's a juvenile eastern river cooter, maybe three, four inches from nose to tail. the tank is a thirty-gal, currently filled about halfway. i have a fine gravel substrate, a few real plants and some moss (when he doesn't eat them), a floating "rock" for basking with a submerged ramp, a floating "log" with a large underwater cavity and several large holes on each side, and a completely underwater hollow "log" with open ends and a large hole in each side.

 

[fishy714]

Most turtle species dont do very well with other things in their tanks. Specially with fish since turtles get really messy and it will be to hard to keep the water clean. Your 30 gallon wont last very long its fine now but i say in a couple months it will outgrow your tank.

 

[deeleywoman]

i know how long he will last in this tank. it was what i could do at the time. also, he is actually very, very clean.... the substrate is very clean (i credit the snails for that) and the water is stable.

also, i'm not necessarily planning on getting him tankmates; this is more of a theoretical discussion.

 

[Vicious_Fish]

Making a natural setup is aways a great idea. It can definitely help a creature relax and feel more secure. You have good intentions but turtles don't need tank mates and they don't get lonely. They actually do better when kept solitary. Any living creature you add is at risk of becoming Scooter's next meal. If anything, I would add more native plants to your setup.