Animal Questions.org

Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Animals

Can Turtles Die From Being Stuck On Their Back?

It is true that if a turtle gets stuck on its back, there is the possibility of it dying. In fact, male turtles sometimes fall backwards after copulation and if they are unable to right themselves they can die of starvation.

A turtle’s ability to right itself after falling onto its back also depends upon the particular species. For instance,, the flat shelled turtle that lives in freshwater have long, muscular necks which make it easier for them to flip themselves back over if they happen to accidently get flipped onto their backs.

However for other species of turtles and tortoises, righting themselves can be a task if they have been flipped onto their back. Tortoises and turtles that live on land have much shorter legs and necks which makes it harder for them to get off of their backs. It has been said that early explorers and sailors even used to take giant land turtles with them on long journeys across the oceans as a source of fresh meat, and they would keep the creature upside down so that they weren’t able to wander off of the ship and/or get away.

Some turtles are fortunate enough to have been made equipped with shells that will automatically right themselves if they are flipped over. The very tall domed shells of the star tortoise for instance have a natural tendency to roll back into an upright position. This is also due to the mono-static shape which effectively means that there is one position that they are most stable in. That position being right side up.

For other turtles whose shells are flatter, they have two stable positions on their front and on their back which means that the possibility of getting stuck on their backs is more likely. Even worse are the turtle’s whose shells have even more stable points. Having these stable points makes them more likely to flip onto their backs as well as onto their sides and get stuck halfway through when trying to roll back onto their fronts.

Young turtles that get stuck on their backs in direct sunlight can overheat and die in a very short matter of time. It can even happen in minutes! If a turtle accidently flips onto its back while underwater there is the possibility of it drowning, starving to death or becoming stranded in cold waters and dying from the freezing temperatures.

Comments

  1. I don’t know what to do I have a Sucatta she is 6 years old. everytime I put her outside I find her on her back. I am really afraid to put her in her pen that I just builtbecause I live in the Mojave Desert.I just rescued her because she was living in a terrarium in somebody’s living room.they were not feeding her correctlyand I knew she needed to get out of that confined space. so now I am struggling with the fact that she needs to be watched. I don’t know what to do

    Reply

  2. I have a turtle named Kevin and just a while ago he flipped over and landed on his back,and I panicked and worried and I started crying to my mom saying “Mom he’s gonna die FLIP HIM BACK OVER!!!!And then she said it wasn’t gonna did so I went online and found this website.And I read and found out they could at certain methodsThanks animalquestion.org!!!

    Reply

    • I know when I saw my turtle on its back I freaked and wanted to sob so I flipped him over and he’s fine but I’m still worried he’s not even two yet and I’m just a little kid my dog died two years ago and I just want something I can keep my whole life I love him so much and I don’t know what I’d do without him he keeps climbing on his little hut and it worries me but he loves that thing so much so I can’t take it out when I clean his cage he comes to the edge of it to see his hut it brakes my heart and I don’t know what to do

      Reply

  3. While driving down the road, I saw a small turtle laying upside down in the middle of the road. I turned around and picked him up. He wasn’t moving, I thought he was dead, don’t know how long he was in that situation. It took about 5 mins. to get home, and he was already moving around some. I walked to my friend’s back yard, on the canal and placed little turtle down, so he could decide what he wanted to do. He made a beeline into the canal, and started swimming away.(he had little claw like hands, not flippers). He was a few feet away, and just stopped to gather his thoughts, I suppose. He didn’t sink down, so I am hoping that he will survive. There are 3 large spiny softshelled turtles who come around in that area, that I throw fish pebbles to. He’ snot their “kind”, but I don’t think they would harm him if he were still around when they come over there. I just thought that little turtle was all dried out within, and the water could help him.

    Reply

  4. I have a hatchling painted turtle that keeps flipping upside down in the water. He tries greatly to get back up but I always have to turn him around. I’m afraid that it will happen while I’m at school or just away from home and I won’t be able to get him. Will he drown if he is like this and I’m not able to help him? Is there anything I can do to stop it?

    Reply

  5. Louie was feeling extra sad, but now he’s quite happy! What turned his frown upside-down? The storyline’s up to your first grader, as he comes up with his own turtle tale. This cute worksheet will inspire him to start writing stories, and give him some important handwriting practice.
    If he enjoys this, make sure to try the full set of Story Starter worksheets.

    Reply

  6. I just found one of my tortoises flipped and dead. I have 2 and they fight but usually turn each other back. I know I saw him fine 6 hours ago or less, and now he’s gone. 🙁

    Reply

  7. Well, I got on here to find out if “Mr /Ms Turtle” would die on her back first I know that’s a strange name but she found me and I thought she was a male and she got used to the name mr turtle just to find out she is a female lol so now I call her Mr Ms turtle 🐢, anyways I had her in a kiddy pool she was OK with that, but I have a unfinished pond in my backyard with a waterfall it will b nice, but like a dummy I filled it up and put her in it cuz it’s deep and has a place she can sun bask on but it got yukky without a pump and filter, I took her out and she is upset she is flipping of like every 15 trying to get out of this kiddy pool! She loved that pond in the morning she would climb out and walk over to me while I was having my morning cigarette and outside, yeah that’s not going to happen she mad, so I’m worried she is going to do this flipping while I’m asleep or gone, believe it or not I usually put her to bed about 9pm but who knows she could just look asleep in that Lil pool and please help and thank for listening to me talk about my turtle 🐢

    Reply

  8. I found my turtle flipped when I came back from school today but sadly he was dead. His name was Luke and he was a baby turtle. I had him for 2 moths and I don’t know if he actually died from that or if he died from something else.

    Reply

  9. One of our 7 box turtles died today. She flipped over some time between last night and lunchtime when I found her! Our Australian Shepherd Axel alerted me to her. I don’t know if he knew she was dead by her look(s), smell, or what, but he kept Prancing around the kennel they are in. Pomme was right at the corner, upsidedown. My two boys have one less girlfriend!!

    Reply

  10. Does anybody know why my turtles died? I had two red eared baby turtles. First we had them in one little tank, then we bought another so they would be separated. We fed them everyday and let them outside in our porch for part of the day then back inside. We also cleaned their water every other day. While I was out with my boyfriend my sister called me crying saying they were dead. When I got home I told her to tell me what happened and she said they were outside and when she went to go check on them they were both dead upside down. They were both separated in their own tanks. Could they have had a heat stroke? We buried them in our back yard, but till this day idk why they died, does anyone have an idea?

    Reply

  11. I have a two week old turtle named sammy. He flips over all the time so I read this. I am sorry for those people that turtles died so I decided to pray for all of you. :]

    Reply

  12. My 10 year just got a baby turtle yesterday. She tries to climb up the wall of her house. She flipped over on her back and my daughter cried because she was scared it could have died. Once she flipped the turtle back over , it proceeded to continue walking on its journey.

    Reply

  13. I found one of my box turtles upside down and dead when I can home from work yesterday. Looks like she was trying to climb up a small step to get up on patio and flipped over. I had previously had to flip her back over in the yard, so I guess she had problems righting herself. Unfortunately, yesterday she flipped on the patio in direct sun and probably died from overheating. Sad day 🙁

    Reply

  14. I found the neighbors land turtly walking down the sidewalk and am baby sitting tii they come home tomorrow. i put him in a good size container fulkl of dirt with a small plant and fed him. I keep checking on him and found him upside down a few times and i righted him. My brother says it ok to be upside down and he turns it over while holding it as he says it calms it down. I just don’t think so. So I found this sight to find out if what he says is tue. Can anyone answer this question? I have two water turtles my brother found by a dumpster a few years ago and were very tiny then in a very small container. I put them in that same container when cleaning their large aquarium. Not anymore They reall grew and not one would fit in it now not even on its side. I have onely found one of them upside down once while cleaning their home as he was trying to get out of the container. They are a funny pair.

    Reply

  15. Our red eared slider Rocky deliberately flips upside down while sunning herself. She can flip either way at will. The first time I found her there in the sun upside down, I thought I was doing her a favor and flipped her right side up. She gave me a long look and then deliberately flipped back upside down. I guess she wants to equalize her suntan. She does this frequently. Sometimes, when she is bored I guess, she flips over and crawls around upside down on her tippy toes. When she tires of this, she flips back over. Turtles are amazing creatures.

    Reply

  16. that happened to mine once! so now I’m scared that if shes flipped all today when I’m at work….. usually she flips herself over but this one time was a little scary.

    Reply

  17. Someone gave me a baby box desert Southwest turtle and I’m afraid to let it go wild. Have it in a planter bed outside about 4ft x 2ft and give it food and water. How big should it be before I set it free with my other turtles in my large backyard? This is a baby of the current turtles I have, a friend of mine gave me the entire ‘herd’ 3 adults, which I’ve had about 2 weeks and yesterday she called me and said she found a baby. I picked it up and now it’s in the big planter. The baby is about 2 1/2″ big. I’m taking all 4 to the vet next week for a checkup…3 adults and 1 baby. Just curious!

    Reply

    • I would put the baby turtle in side in an aquarium, with a heat lamp and a place to hide in. I keep the baby’s inside for a few years. Birds will eat the babys. Good luck to you.😊

      Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *