Lizards
Georgia has 56 reptiles and 12 amphibians — the 2026 checklist
The paper divides species recorded in Georgia into confirmed and candidate taxa — this is not a list of new discoveries.
Read the article
Pond Slider
Trachemys scripta
An introduced freshwater turtle — a pet species, not native to Georgia.
Vicinity of Tbilisi and Batumi — introducedRisk to humansHarmless
Overview
What is Pond Slider
The pond slider (Trachemys scripta) is not native to Georgia. Tarkhnishvili et al. 2026: it was unintentionally introduced during the last decade as a common pet species; reproducing populations exist in the vicinities of Tbilisi and Batumi. The subspecies is T. s. elegans. The checklist record cites Reshetnikov et al. 2023.
Last updated
Identification
How to identify Pond Slider
An introduced water turtle. T. s. elegans has a red stripe behind the eye; a high-domed shell is the land tortoise.
A water turtle with a flatter shell than a land tortoise’s dome. Not a land tortoise — it swims.
In Georgia the subspecies is T. s. elegans: a broad red stripe behind the eye. A high-domed shell is the land tortoise (Testudo graeca).
Webbed feet; often basks on the bank of ponds and lakes. That basking is not land-tortoise behaviour.
Not native. Tarkhnishvili et al. 2026: reproducing populations in the vicinities of Tbilisi and Batumi — two foci, not the whole country.
Native pond turtle (Emys orbicularis) and Caspian turtle (Mauremys caspica) lack the red ear stripe.
No. Tarkhnishvili et al. 2026 list it as introduced: a pet species of the last decade. Native water turtles are the pond turtle and the Caspian turtle.
Reproducing populations in the vicinities of Tbilisi and Batumi (Tarkhnishvili et al. 2026). Those are two foci, not all of Georgia.
T. s. elegans has a broad red stripe behind the eye. Pond and Caspian turtles lack that stripe. The land tortoise (Testudo graeca) has a high-domed shell.
No. The checklist treats this species as a pet and an unintentional introduction. Do not release pet turtles into ponds or lakes.
Site classification: Harmless. It has no venom.
An introduced water turtle. T. s. elegans has a red stripe behind the eye; a high-domed shell is the land tortoise.
An omnivorous freshwater turtle — invertebrates, plant material, and small vertebrates.
References
Sources
References
Sources
- Tarkhnishvili et al. 2026 — Annotated checklist of Georgia's amphibians and reptiles
- Reshetnikov et al. 2023 — Rarely naturalized pet terrapin expansion in Eurasia
- Iankoshvili & Tarkhnishvili 2021 — Georgian herpetofauna records cited in Tarkhnishvili et al. 2026
- The Reptile Database
Species profiles are compiled from peer-reviewed literature and established biodiversity databases, and are reviewed as new taxonomic and conservation data become available.
Related guides
Continue with related pages
Catalog
Turtle species
Four turtles in one index — land, native freshwater, and the introduced slider.
IndexWaterFreshwater turtles
European pond turtle, Caspian turtle, and the introduced red-eared slider.
Freshwater turtlesIDTurtle identification
Field key: land or water, slider or native, Emys or Mauremys.
ID guideNews