Red Ear Sliders causing problems in Auckland

[Adrienne]

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11560238&ref=NZH_FBpage

[livingart]

They have been getting dumped for years all over NZ,we ended up with 72 turtles at one stage either unwanted pets or found wandering

There are some very emotive words used in the article but no actual figures another example of modern journalism

[dragonz1833]

ashame just get spark/telecom to do another ad and everyone will snap them up again

[alanmin4304]

The problem is they all want babies that are cute, not adults.

[Shilo]

The council is looking at reviewing ownership laws yet they don't know if the turtles can breed in the wild or what damage they are actually doing?  Surely they would have done an impact study on the turtles before changing ownership laws.  But then again they did the same with Blue Tongues which weren't even found in the wild.  Maybe its because they aren't covered in fur or feathers.....

 Pet shops and breeders need to be more proactive and make a point of advising that if somebody buys a turtle (or any animal) from them then they must be prepared to look after it for its whole life span.  But short term money talks and it looks like they will miss out on being able to sell any red-eared sliders now.

[livingart]

http://researcharchive.vuw.ac.nz/xmlui/bitstream/handle/10063/1449/thesis.pdf?sequence=1

[Shilo]

Thanks Livingart, some nice light reading....

"Our regional-scale predictions indicate that, while RES are able to survive in several areas throughout New Zealand, the potential to establish self-sustaining (i.e. breeding) populations appears restricted to the upper areas of the North Island where mean daily temperatures in the hottest month exceed 24˚C, such as Northland, Coromandel, and parts of the Bay of Plenty. Due to the temperature-dependent sex determination of RES, it is possible that conditions in these areas may produce primarily male hatchlings, however, with the constant supplementation of individuals (including adult females with the ability to store sperm) to the population via deliberate releases and escapes from captivity, combined with their longevity, the potential for negative impacts on the New Zealand environment exists."

So the potential for them to breed in the Auck region is there but unless there is an extremely hot spring (breeding season) only male offspring will result.  Which is probably why the council hasn't been able to confirm a self sustaining population.  The paper mentions that the council has been looking into it since 2007.

Whether it is right the council should list them as a surveillance pest or not who knows.  But personally I think there are more common pets out there that are already causing more environmental damage that need to be controlled and have restrictions placed on them before spending money and resources on a potential.

[Adrienne]

I know that some pet shops (Hollywood Fish Farm) take the sale of any turtles very seriously, questioning potential buyers and advising them of everything they need to know before selling.

The trouble is as Alanmin says - everyone wants babies that are cute, so as the turtles mature they are released or left to wander around properties where eventually they head off into the unknown.  

I would hate for the same thing to happen as in the States where the lakes are chocker of RES.

 

[Benjansss]

I would hate for the same thing to happen as in the States where the lakes are chocker of RES.

aren't they native to the states 

[Caryl]

According to wikipedia... It is native to the southern United States and northern Mexico, but has become established in other places because of pet releases, and has become an invasive species in many areas, where it outcompetes native species. The red-eared slider is included in the list of the world's 100 most invasive species published by the IUCN.

[alanmin4304]

They give the native species a hard time in Queensland. The main reason bluies are restricted in Auckland is because they have live young and don't rely on incubation temperatures to hatch eggs.

[BigBossPants]

Are Blueys restricted further north as well as Auckland? I tried to find out but nobody at the council, maf (mpi) or doc could tell me... I'm very interested in this story, looking forward to further developments

[livingart]

From here https://www.google.co.nz/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=4&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwiWpKKXuIDKAhUE56YKHYThAFEQFgguMAM&url=http%3A%2F%2Fshapeauckland.co.nz%2Fmedia%2F1435%2Fdiscussiondoc.pdf&usg=AFQjCNG1Bhi5Qyl2fqN8yv3ThKGJdLqJjg&sig2=Yld7jxoAgQNbgupTmikG2g&bvm=bv.110151844,d.dGY Reptiles

Reptiles

Bearded dragon Pogona barbata syn. Amphibolurus barbatus Declared pest across the region when not held in secure containment

Blue-tongued skink Tiliqua scincoides & T. nigrolutea Surveillance throughout region

Eastern water dragon Physignathus lesueurii lesueurii Declared pest across the region when not held in secure containment

Red-eared slider turtle Trachemys scripta elegans Declared pest across the region when not held in secure containment

Shingleback lizard Trachydosaurus rugosus syn. Declared pest across the region

[alanmin4304]

My understanding is that temperature determination of gender with reptiles like beardies takes place in the first 12 days of incubation so it maybe that to get both sexes feral is quite possible. Some people incubate eggs at the temperature they want to determine the sex they want then wind the temperature up to shorten the incubation time.