The red-eared slider turtle, a common aquarium pet, has a normal heat rate of 25 beats a minute. If it’s deprived of oxygen it drops to 10 beats a minute. Winter conditions also make their heart rate drop to one beat per minute. Yet the turtle is still alive and healthy.
Turtles are reptiles belonging to the order Testudines. Some species of turtles can live more than 100 years. According to The Telegraph, the world’s oldest living land creature is a 183 year old tortoise named Jonathan.
There are about 300 species of turtles living on land in all continents except Antarctica and in both salt water and fresh water.
Turtles are the most ancient of all living reptiles. They first appeared on earth some 200 million years ago and have remained relatively unchanged. Their survival is most likely due to one of nature’s most successful designs – the shell.
Read more turtle facts from Live Science.
Keeping a turtle? Here are some tips all new turtle keepers need to know shared by Reptilesmagazine.com.