Despite the armor of the turtles, they have many enemies both on land and in the water, both in nature and in the home. Of course, the most important enemy of turtles is a person who catches and kills these reptiles for meat, shell, eggs and just for fun, and also destroys, specifically or accidentally, the habitats and reproduction of these animals. Like all other animals, turtles are overcome by viruses, fungi, parasites and helminths.
Often weakened and sick turtles become food of ants and small bugs, which can fairly eat the soft parts of the turtle body and in a short period of time. Therefore, one should try not to leave weakened turtles on the street without constant supervision.
Turtles do not shy away from eating their kin, especially if they can not protect themselves or run away. Therefore, in an aquarium, even with small trionics you can see someone without a paw, a tail, and even without a head. And this can happen both among the water and among the land tortoises.
Young sea turtles after hatching, and until they grow enough to threaten crabs, horse mackerel, large predatory fish and even sharks.
Birds of prey shed turtles from a height onto rocks and peck them out of a split shell. Sea birds carry newborn cubs of sea turtles, and ravens – small sunny turtles walking in the sun. Therefore, when walking turtles it is recommended to put a net over the enclosure or closely monitor the animal.
There are cases when the foxes also pushed the turtles from the ledge onto the rocks to split their shell and eat them. The Jaguar in South America is so pure rake the turtles from their natural fortress that the travelers compared the results of his work with the results of the work by a thin sharp knife. At the same time, the jaguar prepares several tortoises for a meal, turning them on their back necessarily on an even place without vegetation, where it is difficult for them to catch their heads and legs for something to turn over and crawl away.
At home, rats bite and eat up paws and tail crawling across the floor turtles, and dogs easily bite the shell.
