Turtles don’t have teeth, and this includes freshwater turtles, sea turtles, terrapins, and even tortoises. Instead of teeth, these chelonians have strong beaks with which they bite, tear, and chew.
Oddly enough, baby turtles or hatchlings are born with a single tooth. This is referred to as an egg tooth. They use this single tooth which is attached to the front of their beak to break through their shell.
This is because reptile eggshells are leathery and very tough to break. The baby tooth is needed to cut through this tough shell. A few days after hatching, this tooth falls off as it has served its purpose.
Table of Contents
Do Turtles Have Teeth?
If turtles have no teeth, how do they chew their food?
As you may already know, there are hundreds of turtle species and they feed on a wild variety of foods from leaves, fruits, grasses, and weeds to small mammals, fish, shellfish, gastropods, and insects. And they eat all these foods without teeth.
Beaks and lips
Most turtles have beaks also referred to as jaws. These beaks or jaws are sharp and keep growing throughout the turtle’s life. In the wild, the beaks wear down constantly – as fast as they grow.
This keeps the beak at the right size. In captivity, you may need to trim the beak every now and then. Turtles use their upper and lower beaks to bite off (or in better terms snip) chunks of food before swallowing.
Just like birds, turtles don’t chew their food much. They bite and swallow. Some turtles such as the alligator snapping turtles (Macrochelys temminckii) have enough bite force to amputate a human finger and break a broom into two.
Some turtles also have lips (but no teeth). Some examples include softshell turtles such as spiny softshell turtle and Florida softshell turtle (Apalone ferox).
These turtles swallow their prey/food whole. They lure small prey close and then suck them into their mouths before proceeding to swallow them.
Carnivorous Turtles
Many aquatic turtle species are carnivores. These include sea turtles such as adult loggerhead turtles (Caretta caretta) and subadult green sea turtle (Chelonia mydas) and even freshwater turtles such as musk turtle species and snapping turtle species.
Of course, it isn’t surprising to have a carnivorous turtle eat plants on rare occasions. However, their diet consists mainly of animal-based foods. These carnivorous turtles have beaks/mouths that allow them to efficiently hunt and eat prey.
For those with beaks, their beaks have knife-sharp ridge and are pointed. They use their strong beaks to hold onto prey such as birds whom they drown. These beaks can also easily pierce and tear up flesh with ease.
As pointed out earlier, turtles such as snappers can even break a broomstick into two. The fresh and bones of the smaller animals they hunt stand no chance.
Carnivorous turtles such as black softshell turtles have long snorkel-like noses and soft lips. They are ambush predators and wait patiently for prey. They quickly pounce on any passing prey and swallow them whole.
Herbivorous Turtles
Unlike carnivorous turtles, herbivorous turtles do not need sharp, pointed beaks. As such, they do not have these types of beaks.
Instead, turtles such as Russian tortoises (Agrionemys horsfieldii) have strong short beaks with tiny ridges (serration) all along the edge and cusps.
These serrated beaks act like teeth and help them tear up the foliage they eat. These turtles eat a lot of foliage, vegetables, and fruits, such as beak is perfect for them.
Omnivorous turtles
Most freshwater turtles such as cooters (Pseudemys species), painted turtles (Chrysemys picta), map turtles(Graptemys species), and many more are omnivorous. As such, they eat both animals and plants.
Their beaks have adapted to these foods. So while their beaks are sharp and pointed, they are nowhere as sharp or as pointed as that of carnivorous turtles. In fact, their beaks resemble that of herbivorous turtles than that of carnivorous turtles.
Do sea turtles have teeth?
Sea turtles are generally carnivorous when young and as such have pointed beaks, although not as pointed as a carnivorous freshwater turtle such as the alligator snapping turtle.
Turtles such as olive ridley sea turtle, green sea turtle, and the loggerhead turtle all have pointed beaks. Their mouths are very scary looking indeed since they are filled with hundreds of spikes.
Leatherbacks, loggerheads, and green sea turtles all have spikes in their mouths. While this looks scary, it’s only deadly for their main prey – the jellyfish. The spikes protect the turtle from the stings of the jellyfish.
Several sea turtle species such as the hawksbill turtle (Eretmochelys imbricata) and the green sea turtles have serrated tomium (the sharp cutting edge of the beak) as well.
Baby tooth
Baby turtles need to break open their shells by themselves, they do this using a sharp temporary egg tooth known as a caruncle. This baby tooth is actually an extension of their upper beak/jaw and is technically not a tooth. This falls off after birth.
The video below shows freshly hatched baby box turtles that have the baby tooth still on them.
Turtle bites
Although turtles do not have teeth, they can still bite. These bites can be hard enough to break the skin and draw blood.
It is up to you to protect yourself from turtle bites even when you feed them or help them cross a road.
Automobiles accidentally running over turtles have a significant impact on the wild population of many turtle species across the world.
Carnivorous turtles such as common snapping turtle (Chelydra serpentina) generally have the most painful and dangerous bites.
These turtles have sharp strong beaks that can cause a lot of bleeding and even fractures when they attack humans. Snapping turtles don’t seek to harm humans.
Instead, they may react defensively if they feel threatened by a human. The purpose of such bites is to deter the much bigger human.
Herbivorous turtles may also bite humans to defend themselves. Some tortoises can confuse the human leg for a shrub and accidentally bite it. This is however rare as tortoises have excellent eyesight.
What should you do when a turtle bite you?
If the turtle holds on after biting you, you need to remove the turtle by submerging it in water. The turtle will eventually let go. Pulling the turtle off forcefully can lead to more damage.
Since turtles carry salmonella, any injury that breaks the skin should be treated by a health professional. Otherwise, wash the bitten area with warm water and soap.
Before handling your turtle, it is important to wash your hands. After handling the turtle you also need to wash your hands thoroughly. This is because turtles carry salmonella.
Conclusion
Although turtles can bite, they do not have teeth. Oddly enough, baby turtles have a single tooth-like caruncle that they use to cut open their leathery shells. This tooth falls out after just a few days.
Turtles have either beaks or lips. Very few turtles have lips. These include softshell species. These have snorkel-like noses and soft lips with no teeth. All other turtles have beaks.
These beaks can be serrated as in the case of the green sea turtle, Russian tortoise, or cooters. Turtles have capable beaks that allow them to feed efficiently. Some turtles such as snappers have enough bite force to amputate a human finger.
If you have any questions or extra information, leave a comment below.