Food for Painted Turtles

Painted turtles are omnivores, meaning they eat both plants and other animals. Painted turtles in the wild will feed on carrion if available. They eat in the water, because they have trouble manipulating their food on dry land.

  1. Young Turtles

    • Young painted turtles are predators and eat mainly meat such as earthworms, small fish, crustaceans and aquatic bugs.

    Mature Turtles

    • Mature painted turtles still eat meat, but they switch to a more plant-based diet with lots of leaves, berries and algae.

    Commercial Turtle Food

    • Painted turtles kept as pets can have their natural diet supplemented with pelleted turtle food to ensure they receive enough vitamin D, but that should not be their main diet.

    Painted Turtles as Pets

    • Pet painted turtles should be offered the same food that they would normally find in the wild, including small feeder fish such as goldfish and guppies placed in their tank to encourage exercise as they chase them.

    Fun Fact

    • Turtles have no teeth. Instead they have bony plates inside their mouth that grip the food and help them toss it to the back of their mouth so they can swallow it.