Snake Neck Turtles

The Eastern Snake-necked Turtle is one of the strangest-looking turtles you can keep, and Priya’s been answering questions about them in our inbox for years. The neck is the giveaway: in adult animals it can reach nearly 60 % of the length of the shell, which is why an animal sitting still at the bottom of the tank suddenly looks like a different species entirely when it stretches up to take a breath.

This guide covers everything we’d want to tell a first-time owner: where they come from, whether they make good pets, how big they get, how to set up their enclosure, what to feed them, and the husbandry mistakes we see most often.

What species are we actually talking about?

“Snake-necked turtle” is a common name shared across several species, which causes a lot of confusion. The animal most readers mean when they email us is Chelodina longicollis — the Eastern Snake-necked Turtle, also called the Common Snake-necked or Eastern Long-necked. It’s native to eastern Australia.

Other animals sold under the “snake-neck” umbrella include:

• Cann’s Snake-necked Turtle (Chelodina canni) — northern Australia. Closely related to the Eastern, and the two will hybridise in the Styx River drainage in Queensland where their ranges overlap.
• Broad-shelled Turtle (Chelodina expansa, formerly Macrochelodina expansa) — the giant of the group, reaching 40 cm of shell length. Aggressive feeders, not beginner-friendly.
• Reimann’s Snake-necked Turtle (Chelodina reimanni) — one of the smallest, around 15 cm of shell. New Guinea.
• Northern Snake-necked Turtle (Chelodina oblonga) — western Australia, around 30 cm.

All of these are Pleurodira — side-necked turtles — meaning they tuck their head sideways under the lip of the shell rather than retracting it straight back. The neck is too long to pull straight in. If you’ve only kept Cryptodira (sliders, painteds, tortoises) before, the side-neck behaviour will feel alien at first.

Are snake-necked turtles good pets?

Honest answer: not for beginners, and not for owners who want an animal that tolerates handling. We do recommend them — for the right keeper.

What you’re signing up for:

• Long-term commitment. 30+ years in captivity isn’t unusual; some captive specimens have made it past 50.
• Substantial tank requirements. An adult Eastern Snake-neck needs at least a 280-litre (75-gallon) tank, and we’d argue closer to 400 litres for a long-term healthy setup. Females are bigger than males and benefit from the extra space.
• Aquatic, almost exclusively. They bask less than sliders and prefer to remain on the bottom unless they’re surfacing for air. Their lungs are large; you’ll see them sit motionless underwater for 20–30 minutes at a time.
• Defensive temperament. They’ll musk when handled (we’ll come back to that), and the bigger species can deliver a real bite. Plan on observing rather than picking up.
• Specialist diet. Almost exclusively carnivorous as juveniles, and they’re fussy. Don’t expect them to convert to commercial pellets easily.

If those things sound like a good match, you’ll find a snake-neck endlessly interesting to watch. They hunt like a heron — head pulled back into an S, then snapped forward to strike at prey — and the speed of that strike is genuinely surprising.

How big do they get?

For the species most readers ask about, the Eastern Snake-necked Turtle:

• Hatchlings emerge at around 3 cm of shell length.
• Males mature at roughly 12–14 cm shell length, usually at 7–9 years old.
• Females mature larger, at 18–22 cm shell length, around 10–12 years old.
• Maximum adult size is around 28 cm of carapace length for large females.

The Broad-shelled Turtle, which gets confused with the Eastern in the trade, reaches 40 cm and needs a very different (much bigger) enclosure. If you’re buying, ask the breeder which Chelodina species the parents were, and look at adult photos before committing.

Enclosure setup

Snake-necks are aquatic, bottom-dwellers, and need depth — not basking surface area. Here’s what we run for ours:

• Water depth: at least twice the shell length, ideally three times. They’re strong swimmers and use the water column. Hatchlings need shallower water (around shell-length depth) with easy access to surface.
• Tank size: 280 litres minimum for an adult, 400+ litres ideal. A long, low tank (longer footprint) suits them better than a tall narrow one.
• Filtration: rated for double the tank volume. They’re messy eaters and produce a lot of waste. We use canister filters.
• Basking platform: required even though they bask less than sliders. Get them fully out of the water, with a UVB tube above and a basking lamp warming the platform to about 32 °C.
• Water temperature: 22–25 °C is the comfortable range. Hatchlings benefit from the warmer end. Wild Eastern populations tolerate cooler water in winter and will brumate naturally, but indoor captives are healthier kept warm year-round.
• Substrate: we go bare-bottom for ease of cleaning. Some keepers like a fine sand layer because snake-necks naturally bury themselves; if you go that route, use pool-filter sand, not aquarium gravel.
• Hiding spots: bogwood, large smooth rocks, and live or fake plants. They want cover and will use it.
• UVB: reptile-grade 5.0 tube replaced annually. Even though they bask less, they need it for shell development.

Diet

Eastern Snake-necks are opportunistic carnivores. In the wild, they eat insects, small fish, tadpoles, crustaceans and the occasional amphibian. In captivity, that translates to:

• Hatchlings to year 2: feed daily. Bloodworms, blackworms, small earthworm pieces, the occasional small feeder fish, the rare hatchling-sized aquatic turtle pellet (most won’t take pellets initially).
• Juveniles to year 5: feed every other day. Earthworms, crickets (occasionally), small feeder fish, krill, mussels, shrimp.
• Adults: feed 2–3 times a week. Larger items — whole nightcrawlers, freeze-dried krill, raw prawns, mussels, the occasional pinky mouse as a treat (no more than once a month).

Calcium dust food twice a week. A weekly multivitamin including vitamin A is important because most of the high-protein diet is calcium-poor.

Don’t expect a snake-neck to take dry pellets readily. We’ve had ones that refuse pellets entirely for their whole lives and others that’ll take them after months of patience. It’s normal — their natural diet is wet, wriggling, and protein-heavy.

Behaviour and handling

Three behaviours we get asked about most:

1. The musk. Snake-necked turtles have musk glands and will release a foul-smelling secretion when handled or threatened. This is the “stinker” reputation. Hatchlings musk freely; adults learn to stop musking once they’re comfortable with their keeper but it can take a year or more. Don’t take it personally.
2. The strike. Watching a snake-neck hunt is one of the best things in turtle-keeping. The head pulls back into an S, then snaps forward across the length of the neck in a fraction of a second. They’re ambush predators and very good at it. Don’t put fingers in the water at feeding time.
3. The aestivation behaviour. In the wild, Eastern Snake-necks aestivate (the warm-season equivalent of hibernation) when ponds dry up — they burrow into leaf litter near the shore and wait for rain. Captive specimens occasionally try to aestivate by climbing out of the water and hiding in a dark corner. If yours does this for more than a day or two, check water quality and temperature; it usually means something’s wrong with the setup rather than a natural cycle.

Health red flags

The big ones we see in our inbox:

• Respiratory infection. Wheezing, bubbles at the nares, lopsided floating. Almost always caused by water too cold or basking spot under-temperature. We cover triage in our Turtle Health & Feeding Guide.
• Shell rot. White or grey patches that don’t scrub off. Less common in snake-necks than in sliders because they spend less time piled on basking platforms, but still happens with poor water quality.
• Vitamin A deficiency. Swollen eyes, refusal to eat. Caused by an all-feeder-fish or all-bloodworm diet without supplementation.
• Refusal to eat at low temperatures. If the water’s under 20 °C, they’ll slow right down and may stop eating. Not a disease — just check the heater.

Where they’re found in the wild

The Eastern Snake-necked Turtle is native to eastern and south-eastern Australia, found in slow-moving rivers, swamps, billabongs and the Murray–Darling Basin. Their range extends from the Wilton River in Queensland down through New South Wales and Victoria to South Australia (including the Adelaide region). They’re common across most of their range.

The IUCN Red List lists Chelodina longicollis as Least Concern — wild populations are stable. Other Chelodina species are more variable; the Broad-shelled (C. expansa) is listed as Near Threatened in parts of its range, and habitat destruction is the main pressure.

Legal status for keepers

If you’re in Australia, native turtle keeping requires a wildlife licence in most states. New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland and South Australia all have their own permit systems. You can’t take a wild snake-neck home, and captive-bred animals must come with paperwork. Check your state’s wildlife agency before buying.

In the US, UK and Europe, snake-necks are imported under CITES paperwork and are legal to keep in most jurisdictions, but availability is patchy and prices are high compared with native species. Hatchlings typically run US$300–500. The British Chelonia Group can point UK keepers to legitimate breeders.

Buying advice

If you’re ready to commit, our recommendations:

• Buy captive-bred only. Wild-caught animals usually arrive stressed, parasite-laden, and the trade isn’t kind to wild populations.
• Ask the seller which Chelodina species, and ideally see photos of the parents to confirm.
• Hatchlings are fragile for the first three months. If you’re a first-time turtle keeper, a yearling is a more forgiving start.
• Check the eyes (clear, open), the shell (firm, no soft spots, no flaking), and watch the animal feed before paying.
• Don’t buy on impulse from a pet shop. Reputable reptile breeders are worth the wait.

Related on Turtle Times

• Turtle & Tortoise Care Index — master husbandry hub.
• Turtle Health & Feeding Guide — medical and dietary companion.
• Care Sheets & Information — enclosure setup deep-dive.
• All turtle breeds — full species index.
• Can I keep different species together? — relevant if you’re thinking of a community tank (short answer: usually no).

— Priya, who’s kept a single Eastern Snake-necked Turtle named Lurch for the past nine years. Got a snake-neck question? The contact form reaches our shared inbox — flag “snake-neck” in the subject line and it’ll come straight to me.