Distribution
They are introduced wetlands around Colombo of Sri Lanka. This species is originated from the Missisippi river drainage of the U.S. & are introduced to subtropical & tropical countries in Asia, including India, Thailand, Japan, Malaysia & Singapore. 

Characteristics
The shell is rounded with nearly a smooth out line. The plastron lacks a hinge. The carapace is oval and flattened with a weak keel. They have webbed feet that aid the turtle in swimming. Pond sliders communicate with touch and vibrations. They also have a good sense of vision.They have an extreme lifespan (wild) 42 years (high) but most don’t past the age of 30. They are capable of hibernating in very low temperatures.

Males
They are smaller in size than the female. They possess elongated claws on their fingers which they use in courtship/mating. Color in adults fades to a muted olive green color. Some older male individuals become melanistic, appearing almost black with few visible markings. The cloacal opening of the male is beyond the edge of the carapace while the female's opening is usually at or under the rear edge of the carapace. The female reproduce maturity occurs at the age of 3-5 years, 4 inches long. Juvenile turtles do the courtship dance but do not enter in reproducing.

Length
These turtles have the length of 12.50-28.90 cm. They grow quickly at first, reaching about 2 inches within the first year, but growth slows as they get older.

Weight
They grow up to a weight of 240 g (average).

Color
The carapace has green & yellow lines. The adults get darker with a plastron bright yellow with a large black mark on each scute. The juveniles are brighter than adults. Young hatchlings have a green carapace and skin with yellow green to dark green markings and stripes. It has a bright red or orange patch behind the eyes which gives them the name.

Habitat
They are found in lakes, rivers, streams & ponds. These turtles prefer quiet, soft, muddy bottomed waters with suitable basking spots. They are faithful to their home ranges, leaving only to nest or hibernate. It’s also kept as a pet. They are capable of competing with the local turtles & taking their place in the habitat. So they become a threat to other local fresh water turtle species.

Breeding
The female reproduce maturity occurs at the age of 5-7 years, 6-7.5 inches in length. Breeding occurs from March-July. In the breeding season the males does a unique courtship dance that they engage. They approach a female from the front, stretch out their front feet and vibrate their long claws on the female's head and neck. Some may even bite the female. The female usually continues to swim forward while the male does this and, if receptive, will eventually stop and sink to the bottom. The male will then grip the female's carapace with all four claws and arrange himself on top of her. He bends his tail under hers, let go of his front arms, and take an almost vertical position. From this position mating occurs, and lasts about 15 minutes but over all with the courtship behavior takes 45min. if another male occurs at this time the dominance occur & the males fight.

After mating, the female will spend extra time basking in order to keep her eggs warm. Females often travel some distance to find a suitable nesting site. Nests are dug in the soil with the female's back feet. Once the eggs are laid, they longer provide parental care. A female may have 1-3 clutches in a season, with second clutches laid in July or August. The gestation period is 85 days (high). The clutches comprise 2-25 eggs & the incubation period is 65-75 days. They are incubated at temperatures between 22 and 27 degrees Celsius become only males, while eggs that are incubated at warmer temperatures become females.

The eggs are laid 2-4 inch deep hole and then covered with the displaced soil on the bank. It takes 2 to 2.5 months for young to hatch and they do so using their "egg tooth" (caruncle) which disappears soon after hatching. Hatching occurs between July & September. Baby sliders come out of the egg looking like small adults. The hatchlings measure 30-33mm. From 7-10 die out of every 10 eggs and most hatchlings will die before their first year.

Diet
They are omnivorous feeding on vegetation such as hyacinths, macro algae & duck weed, also fruits, fish, aquatic insects, snails, tadpoles, crawfish, crustaceans, mollusks & frogs. Feeding occurs under water, usually in the early morning or late afternoon. Young eat more animal matter & adults consume more of the plant matter.

Human impact & dangers
They are relatively safe from most predators once they reach adult size and while they are in the water. Large predatory fish seem to find the hatchlings difficult to handle & do not tend to eat them. These turtles may attempt to bite and scratch when harassed, but most pull their head and legs into their shells for protection.

Death is caused to them by habitat destruction & pollution. Slider eggs are used as fish bait. They are often killed on roads by automobiles, and are sometimes persecuted by fishermen who mistakenly consider the turtles to be fish eaters.

The establishment of this species outside its natural range (see comments below) may be harmful to native turtle species, but evidence for this supposed competition is presently lacking or anecdotal.

Conservation
According to the IUCN Red List the Red eared Slider is at Lower Risk near Threatened.

Ecological status
Pond sliders help to control populations of the animals that they consume and affect aquatic vegetation as they graze. Young pond sliders are an important food source for large, aquatic predators.

Pond sliders fill an important niche in their wetland habitats, and are appealing to most people. Pond sliders have unfortunately been heavily exploited by humans for both the commercial pet trade and for food purposes.