Red Cheeked Mud Turtle

Easily one of the prettiest colored turtles in all the world, the Red Cheeked Mud Turtle is actually a brightly colored sub species of the Scorpion Mud Turtle. Hatchlings start out with faint red/orange coloring and as they grow, so does their head coloring, yearlings show lots of red/orange, 2 year olds show even more (see our photos), only time will tell how bright each individual will be - but our bright colored adults produce lots of brightly colored off spring...

The Latin (scientific) name, Kinosternon Scorpioides Cruentatum, means blood spotted in honor of this species' bright red or orange head color. Red Cheeked Mud turtles are found in lakes, streams and slow moving rivers from Nicaragua, into Honduras, and Southern Mexico.

Red Cheeked Mud turtles do very well in glass tanks and warm weather ponds. They stay small and get along with quite well with other similar sized Mud and Musk turtles. Males tend to have the brightest head coloring and our breeding colony has exceptionally brilliant color - even for this species. We raise our hatchlings on pellets, giving earth worms and cut fish once or twice a week - but any protein food is readily accepted. Not many breeders work with this handsome species - so their availability is limited.