Red ear turttle bites

Question
QUESTION: Hi, I have two red ear turttles. They were given to me two years ago by a friend. One is a male 15cm and the female who is 21cm. I had them in a 30 gallon aquarium, recently I bouth them an acrylic aquarium of about 1.5 meters long. The male started bitting the female from the back, between the tale and the leg. Its like he was trying to eat her as they were two large bites. I separeted them but i'm shocked.  The female who is larger in size does nothing but to swim away in pain when this happens.
I had never seen this before. I usually give them little fish once a week and feed them twice a day (the pallets of turttle food sold at petco).

ANSWER: Hello Farah, it sounds to me like they don't get along very well, have you noticed any mating signs with the two? They are of age now, and it is possible that he will try to mate with her. Speaking of, be sure you have an area for the female to lay eggs as she will lay eggs with or without mating (without mating the eggs will be infertile) and she is of age now so watch her carefully.
But because you have a new enclosure this means new Turtle Territory. The male is trying to say, "this is my home find your own place to live" He wants to establish that area as his and only his. Turtles do not like sharing their habitats and usually live alone. Some turtles that have been in the same tank for so long get used to it and dont mind. Others will become territorial and agressive. If the tank is big enough can you put a temporary devider inside?
One way to establish that the female was there first (this shouldnt cause the female to be territorial but for the issue to be mutual) is to remove EVERYTHING from the new tank. Clean it very very well to get all the scents of turtle off of it. Put them in a temporary area separated while doing this. Then reconstruct their enclosure be sure that nothing is where it was before. A whole new home for them. Place the female in their first, to establish it has her own. Wait at least a half an hour. Wait longer if possible. The longer you wait the more likely it will work but dont leave the male in a temporary too small are for too long it can be stressful. Then after the female has gotten to new the new area, place in the male that way he is introduced to HER territory, he may recognize that this is her home and he needs to lay off. Or maybe he will keep fighting about it and they will have to stay separated for ever. Its worth a shot.

Good luck and let me know how it goes,
-Yexalen

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thank you for your prompt answer, I really appreciate your time. I will try it as soon as I get home tonight. I was really worried Bubbles (male)was just trying to eat the other turtle.
Concerning the mating signs, I noticed that Bubbles has been trying but somehow Cora (female) does not seem to be interested. Taking advantage of your knowledge, I'm putting about 15 cm of water, how can I make an area for Cora to lay eggs in the aquarium? In this past two years I have not seen her lay eggs. It should be really exciting!

Answer
Hi Farah, your welcome and he is being agressive and territorial and might cause her harm so they may have to be separated if re-introducing them to the home like I mentioned before doesn't work. It is also common that the female will not be perceptive to the male wanting to mate. It is rare that getting one male and one female that they will be willing to mate. They don't just mate like dogs do with whatever one is closest. The males usually compete and if the female thinks he is suitable then she gives "consent" but more often then not the female will want nothing to do with the male.

As for egg laying, you need to provide the egg site for them wether mating has occured or not, if they dont have an adequate laying area they can hold them in and that can be fatal for all involved.

My setup for my gravid (reptile pregnant) turtle is simple and temporary but it is basically a cat litter pan (plastic) raised in the tank so the edge of the pan is a half inch above the water level. The pan is filled 4 inches deep of a 50/50 sand and organic soil mix. Its kept moist but not wet. You want to be able to feel the damp soil/sand but squeezing it in your hand no water should drip out. Keep the basking light on this area.
**For a first time mother the lay site should be at least 4 inches deep but deeper the better**
My future setup (because my turtle just become of age and it was sudden and the eggs should be fertile [so excited] but I haven't had time to do an elaborate setup yet) So it will be plexiglass  that has been aquarium sealant sticking it to the sides to create a platform the width of the tank. Then a lip coming up thats about 5 inches up to make like a box on the one side of the tank (I will attach a link to a picture of one somebody else had done) but then my floating dock will come up the side and it should be very natural.

For more information on egg laying visit

http://redearslider.com under reproduction there is some info.

Here is the link with the picture: (and this site actually SELLs them if you cant make them yourself!)
Here is the picture:
http://www.glasscages.com/gc2/prodpics/turtle_loweredplat.jpg

And here are all the Turtle Tanks they do:
http://www.glasscages.com/?sAction=ViewCat&lCatID=55

Good luck,
Yexalen