Turtle Sounds: Hisses, Chirps, Grunts & Meanings

Turtle sounds can include hissing, chirping, squeaking, grunting, clicking, bubbling, and low underwater calls. Many turtle noises are quiet or low-frequency, so people only hear a small part of what turtles can produce.

This guide explains what turtle sounds usually mean, which sounds are normal, which sounds can point to stress or illness, and when a noisy turtle should see a reptile vet.

For related care topics, see our turtle hissing guide, turtle stress signs guide, and turtle respiratory infection guide.

What sounds do turtles make?

Turtles are quieter than many pets, but they are not silent. Many sounds are too soft or too low for people to notice. Underwater calls may need special recording equipment to detect.

Scientists have recorded vocalizations from many turtle species. A 2022 study found evidence of acoustic communication across turtle families, which changed the older idea that turtles are mostly mute.

Turtle sounds and what they usually mean

How turtles make sounds

Turtles do not make sounds the same way people do. Many audible turtle noises come from air moving through the respiratory system. A quick shell retraction can push air out and create a hiss.

Some sounds may also come from movement of the mouth, throat, jaw, or body during feeding, breathing, mating, or swimming. Underwater vocalizations are more complex and are still being studied.

Because turtles hear and produce many low-frequency sounds, some communication may happen below the range that humans notice.

Normal turtle sounds vs warning sounds

A single short hiss after a turtle is startled is usually not an emergency. A repeated breathing sound with illness signs is different.

Any sound that comes with poor appetite, weakness, nasal discharge, swollen eyes, open-mouth breathing, uneven floating, or shell damage should be treated as a health warning.

Common turtle sounds

Hissing

Hissing is the turtle sound pet keepers hear most often. It usually happens when the turtle feels startled and quickly pulls into its shell.

The sound is air leaving the lungs. It does not mean the turtle is trying to talk or act like a snake. It usually means the turtle wants space.

A turtle that hisses every time you approach may be stressed by handling, tank placement, lack of cover, or repeated disturbance. Review our turtle stress signs guide if hissing appears with hiding, glass surfing, or not eating.

Chirping or squeaking

Chirping is a short, high sound. It may happen in hatchlings, small turtles, stressed turtles, excited turtles, or turtles that are reacting to a new situation.

Occasional chirping can be harmless if the turtle is active, eating, swimming normally, and breathing normally. Repeated chirping should be checked more carefully.

Chirping with wheezing, bubbles, mucus, swollen eyes, open-mouth breathing, or loss of appetite can point to a respiratory problem.

Grunting

Grunting is a short, deeper sound. Turtles may grunt while climbing, eating, mating, or pushing air out during effort.

Some tortoises are especially noticeable during courtship and mating. Males may grunt, groan, or squeak while pursuing or mounting a female.

Brief grunting during activity is usually less concerning than repeated breathing noise at rest.

Wheezing, whistling, or crying-like sounds

Wheezing, whistling, or crying-like sounds are not normal routine turtle sounds. They can happen when mucus, infection, swelling, or poor air movement affects breathing.

These sounds are especially concerning when paired with swollen eyes, bubbles from the nose, open-mouth breathing, lethargy, refusal to eat, or abnormal swimming.

See our turtle respiratory infection guide if the sound seems related to breathing.

Gurgling or bubbling

A single water bubble near the surface is not always a problem. Repeated gurgling, bubbles around the nose, or bubbles with poor appetite can be a respiratory warning.

Do not wait for a noisy breathing problem to become severe. Reptile respiratory infections can get worse when the water is too cold, the basking area is wrong, or the turtle has an underlying deficiency or infection.

Clicking or jaw snapping

Clicking may come from jaw movement, feeding, irritation, or defensive behavior. A turtle may also make a sharp snapping sound if it closes its jaws suddenly.

Keep your hands away from the front half of a defensive turtle, especially snapping turtles. For more context, see our types of snapping turtles guide.

Turtle sounds by situation

Fear and stress sounds

A frightened turtle may hiss, pull into the shell, splash away, hide, or stop moving. This can happen after handling, loud noise, tank tapping, sudden movement, or a new enclosure.

Give the turtle space. Reduce handling, add cover, keep the room calm, and make sure water temperature, basking heat, UVB, and water quality are correct.

Defensive or territorial sounds

A turtle that feels trapped may hiss, snap, lunge, or breathe heavily. This is defensive behavior. It does not mean the turtle is aggressive by nature.

Tank mate conflict can also cause stress. Separate turtles that chase, bite, block basking access, or guard food.

Mating sounds

Mating and courtship can produce some of the loudest turtle and tortoise sounds. Depending on the species, males may grunt, groan, squeak, cluck, or make repeated breathy sounds.

Large tortoises are especially famous for loud mating sounds. Some smaller tortoises may make softer squeaks or chirps.

Do not force breeding or house animals together if one is stressed, injured, or trying to escape the other. For breeding topics, see our turtle breeding guide.

Feeding and attention sounds

Some turtles make small bumps, clicks, splashes, or taps when they recognize a feeding routine. This is not true speech. It is usually learned behavior around food and activity.

A turtle that constantly bumps the glass may be begging for food, but it may also be glass surfing from stress. Check tank size, water quality, feeding schedule, and enrichment before adding more food.

Red-eared slider chirping

Red-eared sliders can produce underwater vocalizations. A 2022 study recorded red-eared sliders and identified 12 call types, including differences across age and sex groups.

A pet slider’s audible chirp may be brief and harmless, especially if the turtle is otherwise healthy. It can also happen when the turtle is stressed by cold water, poor water quality, a new environment, or handling.

Chirping becomes more serious when it sounds like wheezing or comes with open-mouth breathing, nasal bubbles, swollen eyes, lethargy, or not eating.

For habitat review, see our red-eared slider tank setup guide, turtle tank size calculator, and turtle basking guide.

Sea turtle sounds and hatchling calls

Sea turtles were once treated as mostly silent, but acoustic research now shows that they can hear and produce underwater sounds. Many of these sounds are low-frequency and difficult for people to hear without equipment.

Sea turtle hatchlings and embryos have also been recorded making sounds near hatching. Researchers continue to study whether these sounds help coordinate hatching, nest emergence, or other early-life behaviors.

Noise pollution is also important. Vessel traffic, construction, and other human sounds may overlap with the low-frequency hearing range of sea turtles.

For species background, visit our sea turtle species guide, green sea turtle guide, leatherback sea turtle guide, and olive ridley sea turtle guide.

Species with unusual turtle sounds

Some turtle species are especially interesting to sound researchers.

When to see a vet

Call a reptile vet if a turtle’s sound seems tied to breathing, weakness, infection, or a clear change in normal behavior.

• Wheezing, whistling, or crying-like breathing
• Open-mouth breathing or gasping
• Bubbles, mucus, or discharge from the nose or mouth
• Swollen eyes or eyes that stay closed
• Chirping with lethargy, not eating, or abnormal swimming
• Uneven floating, trouble diving, or swimming tilted to one side
• Shell wounds, soft spots, foul smell, red areas, or white patches
• Repeated noise after a fall, bite, escape, or handling accident

Do not treat suspected respiratory infection, shell rot, or eye infection with home care alone. A vet can check temperature history, diet, UVB, water quality, body condition, and signs of infection.

For related health guides, see our turtle first aid guide, shell rot guide, turtle respiratory infection guide, and turtle not eating guide.

Video examples of turtle sounds

Videos can help readers understand the difference between a brief defensive hiss and more concerning breathing sounds. Use videos sparingly so the article remains easy to scan.

Hissing turtle video

Mating tortoise sounds video

Related AllTurtles guides

• Why Do Turtles Hiss?
• Turtle Stress Signs
• Turtle Respiratory Infections
• Why Is My Turtle Not Eating?
• Turtle Tank Setup Guide
• Red-Eared Slider Guide
• Types of Snapping Turtles
• Sea Turtle Species Guide

Frequently asked questions

Sources and further reading

• Nature Communications, Common evolutionary origin of acoustic communication in choanate vertebrates
• Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution, Underwater vocalizations of red-eared sliders
• NOAA Fisheries, Sea Turtles in a Sea of Sound
• Scientific Reports, Response of sea turtles to vocalizations
• Ferrara et al., Turtle vocalizations as evidence of posthatching parental care in chelonians
• Wildlife Conservation Society, Pig-nosed turtle vocalization research summary
• VCA Animal Hospitals, Common Diseases of Aquatic Turtles
• Armand Bayou Nature Center, Turtle Talk

Final thoughts

Turtles make more sounds than many people expect. Hissing, chirping, grunting, clicking, and low underwater calls can all happen in the right context.

The key is context. A brief hiss after a turtle is startled is usually a fear response. Repeated wheezing, bubbles, open-mouth breathing, or chirping with illness signs needs a reptile vet. Listen to the sound, watch the behavior, and check the habitat before deciding what the turtle is telling you.