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Common Musk Turtle — Fact Sheet

Sternotherus odoratus · Common Musk Turtle · Common musk turtle · Stinkpot turtle

📋 At a glance

Adult size8-14 cm
Lifespan30-50 years
SubspeciesNo captive-care subspecies split
OriginSternotherus odoratus is native to eastern and central North America, including much of the eastern United States and a limited southern Canadian range.
ActivityDiurnal
DifficultyBeginner
LegalCITES: Appendix II; EU: Annex B; local rules still apply

🏠 Enclosure

  • Aquarium or pond-style setup with strong filtration and secure escape prevention
  • Adult tank length and water volume must match species; bigger water volume is safer
  • Provide a fully dry basking platform with easy access
  • Avoid small unfiltered tanks, slippery exits, and dirty water

🪨 Enclosure furniture

  • Swimming space, resting ledges, basking dock, visual cover, and safe plants/wood
  • Substrate optional; if used, keep it easy to clean and too large or too fine to swallow dangerously
  • Filter intake protected from trapping animals

💡 Lighting

  • UVB essential over the basking area
  • Use a heat lamp to warm the dry basking platform
  • Replace UVB lamps on schedule; glass blocks UVB
  • Photoperiod: 10-12 h; no night light

🌡️ Temperature

  • Basking spot: 22-26 °C

  • Warm zone: 30-32 °C

  • Cool zone: 20-22 °C

  • Night: 20-24 °C

  • Clear gradient required; the animal must be able to move between warm, cool, and hidden zones

  • Measure basking surfaces with an infrared thermometer and ambient zones with digital probes

  • Avoid heat rocks and unguarded heat sources

💧 Humidity & water

  • Water quality matters more than air humidity
  • Fresh filtered water with regular partial water changes
  • Dry basking area must let the shell dry completely
  • Avoid ammonia/nitrite, stagnant water, and dirty filters

🪳 Diet

Feed regularly:

  • Aquatic turtle pellets, whole invertebrates, aquatic plants/greens as appropriate

In moderation:

  • Fish, shrimp, fruit, and rich protein extras

Avoid:

  • Goldfish-heavy diets, processed meat, bread, dirty leftovers

Supplements:

  • Calcium source and UVB; avoid vitamin overdosing

🩺 Health — warning signs

  • Soft shell → UVB/calcium/nutrition problem
  • Shell pits or smell → shell infection or dirty water
  • Swollen eyes → water quality, vitamin, or infection issue
  • Floating unevenly or wheezing → respiratory disease
  • Refusal to bask → wrong temperature or stress

Consult a reptile- or exotic-animal veterinarian for severe weakness, injury, breathing signs, swelling, or prolonged refusal to eat.