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Finding out fast about Mississippi Maps. Always had for the past 30 plus years RES. Since I converted to Maps I found out with a cold front coming down the other night or should say my baby let me know...He at least hopefully he did not like tanks temp. It's a 3'x5' , 300watt heater on one end so I could get one end about 75*-78* the other 78*-80*. (indoors) This is what I always done and let the turtles decide were they wanted to be and it worked. BUT now Maps , around 2am saw him , thought trouble was coming , just didn't look good. Stayed up rest of night with him , also I pushed the heater up only 4* and only took an hour the temp's up and he was/is great!!! Map's I can say ARE more picky about temp. RES could care less within reason. Thermometer is good tested six against one from my old job ( Hi- Tec thermometer) before I bought it. Still new with Maps and can see lots more,more... reading. This is Chopsley's new home and I will get it right. Hope boy too young yet.
We never had the house heater on we both like it cool. But not our new baby Chopsley !

Kansasslider has a Mississippi Map, so hopefully he chimes in. Maps and RES have overlapping native ranges, so they should do well in the same temps. But as you discovered, babies like it warmer, and RES are very tolerant. He'll probably won't be bothered once he's a little bigger.

Some keepers who have their turts in basements or unheated garages will sometimes cover parts of the tank top overnight. I also wonder if you can insulate a stock tank, maybe with foam?

Hi Steve ! on the outdoor stock tanks on my breezeway I had them wrapped them in some extra wall insulation I had from Hurricane Katrina then put my finish decorative cover. It was the kind with facing (covering) on it as a vapor barrier , kept the fiberglass sealed in not to get in tank or all over. That had a high R-vale working great. Also made a closed in basking area with a doggie style door the RES loved. That kept the stock tanks 12* warmer in the winters. Less heater used. Not that we have cold winters here but can have say 30's at night to high 70's to low 80's by morning. Big temp changes for us. Now with Maps indoors I knew were less tolerant but 4* ... that caught me off guard. Will be more care full.

Maybe it was a first time adjustment, I think they should be very similar to RES. It's those tropical species that you really need to watch the temps.

Tomorrow will be three days since I saw problem. Haven't seen it since that one night. Maybe being a new dad to a new baby Mississippi Map for the first time I was over cautious... All is OK ! eats ,swims ,bask ,active ,all good! Maybe the temp did have something to do with it or not. Last night we had a 25* temp change but we kept the house at 70* for us. That should help control our setup better so not to have wide temp swings in the air around the tank. Do have a good 300watt heater in tank with a shield. Temp in tank is stable (78-80) tanks 3'x5' so one side is a little lower 78* and side by heater 80* , basking (88-90) Like I said , all's good now , like you say maybe a one time adjustment. Thanks'

No problem! What kind of guard are you using?

Heater for sure is Eheim TruTemp 300watt submersible about 18-19" long. Love them , simple control top / old time, less bells and whistles to break. Guard sorry not sure but came from Amazon. They don't carry the one I got any more but have others. It's a four piece that's 1.5" dia. They have several LONG guards very close to the one I got. Just be careful some venders with long guards only have 1" dia. Read spec's. The one I got is 1.5" x 18" and still had to trim the stand off tabs on the inside to fit the Eheim and it worked. Amazon stopped using the vendor I got it from or vendor stopped using Amazon? Anyway it's a four piece that twist locks to each other 1.5"x18". If you fall in-between one section you could always trim the top section to fit better. Minnie was the only RES I had that always played with a heater. She was just weird I guess. Maybe just a hot babe!

Anyone with a heater that has end caps would have to improvise... not all end caps are meant to come off , found that out years ago.

I have Eheims as well and fortunately my RES leave them alone. Don't forget to have your gear plugged into GFCI outlets.

GFCI's for sure ! When it comes to electrical and water I take no chance! Heard horror stories in my time , shocks , killing pet and hurting people. Heaters popping , a tingling feeling when hand by heater , all kind of problems. I had a heater that was getting a small short in it , felt it when cleaning tank. Need not say in the trash it went. Been with Eheims ever since , (years) no problems! Worth it for just a little more money. My life and pets are worth it.

We definitely have come a long way in safety. I always suggest an Eheim or Aqueon heater. They only cost a little more than a standard heater and they are backed by quality and warranty.