aquatic turtle

Question
I put a red slider aquatic turtle aprox 5" in diameter in with my 6 Koi (of a foot or more) a few weeks ago and I haven't seen him. The Koi seem to devour all the turtle food I put in the pond. He is however eating my plants so I know he is there but he never comes out to bask that I see. I have rocks and stone slabs he could easily climb onto. how can I be sure of feeding him? My pond is 3-4' deep and aprox 1200 gals. I have a waterfall and an under water aerater. How can I make his life better?
.

Answer
Hi Joyce,

My apologies for not answering sooner!  It's great that you're providing a pond for your turtle.  There's a few things that could be causing him to stay in the water.  One is that he may still be adjusting to his new home and is a little shy, so could be sliding into the water before you can approach close enough to see him.  Sliders are generally pretty bold turtles, so if this is the case you should start seeing him more often.

Since you're in Arizona, temperatures may already be quite warm.  Rocks make great basking areas, but they do heat up quickly, and you'll need to provide some good shade cover.  An overhanging tree or a few well-placed shrubs will give a good amount of shade, and will also help to give a sense of security from overhead predators.  Something in the water that he can climb out on would be a good idea as well.  Water that's too warm will encourage a turtle to stay in and not bask as much, but your pond depth is pretty good so that may not be an issue.

One last thing--you said you had an aerator, but not a filter.  A really good pond filter is important, both for the turtle and your fish.  You want to keep the water quality as high as possible to reduce the potential for health problems.  The lack of a filter won't prevent him from basking, but it's a necessity for any pond.

For some ideas on plantings around ponds, do a Google image search for "turtle ponds."  There's some very creative ideas out there!