Red-eared slider

The red-eared slider or red-eared terrapin (Trachemys scripta elegans) is a subspecies of the pond slider (Trachemys scripta), a semiaquatic turtle belonging to the family Emydidae. It is the most popular pet turtle in the United States, is also popular as a pet across the rest of the world, and is the most invasive turtle.[2] It is the most commonly traded turtle in the world.[3][4]

Quick facts: Red-eared slider, Scientific classification ,... ▼

Red-eared slider
At the Cincinnati Zoo
Trachemys scripta elegans (Wied-Neuwied), an 1865 engraving by Karl Bodmer, who accompanied the authority on his expedition.
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Testudines
Suborder:	Cryptodira
Superfamily:	Testudinoidea
Family:	Emydidae
Genus:	Trachemys
Species:	T. scripta
Subspecies:	T. s. elegans
Trinomial name
Trachemys scripta elegans (Wied-Neuwied, 1839)
The US range T. s. elegans.
Synonyms[1]
Emys elegans Wied-Neuwied, 1839 Emys holbrookii Gray, 1844 Emys sanguinolenta Gray, 1856 Trachemys elegans — Agassiz, 1857 Clemmys elegans — Strauch, 1862 Trachemys holbrooki [sic] — Gray, 1863 (ex errore) Trachemys holbrookii — Gray, 1869 Trachemys lineata Gray, 1873 Pseudemys elegans — Cope, 1875 Chrysemys elegans — Boulenger, 1889 Chrysemys scripta var. elegans — Boulenger, 1889 Chrysemys palustris elegans — Lindholm, 1929 Pseudemys troostii elegans — Stejneger & Barbour, 1939 Pseudemys scripta elegans — Cagle, 1944 Trachemys scripta elegans — Iverson, 1985 Trachemys scripta elagans [sic] Fong, Parham & Fu, 2002 (ex errore) Trachemys scripta elgans [sic] Fong, Parham & Fu, 2002 (ex errore)

The red-eared slider is native from the Midwestern United States to northern Mexico, but has become established in other places because of pet releases, and has become invasive in many areas where it outcompetes native species. The red-eared slider is included in the list of the world's 100 most invasive species.[6]