box turtle

 

hard-shelled land turtle of the genus Terrapene, native to North America. Its lower shell, or plastron, has a hinge dividing it into front and rear sections; the animal can raise these sections to meet the upper shell, or carapace, forming a secure box around its body. It is primarily a vegetarian, although it also eats insects, earthworms, and slugs. The box turtle hibernates during cold winters and mates in the spring. In summer the female buries from two to seven eggs, which hatch out in the early fall. The young often remain in the nest until the following spring. The Eastern box turtle, Terrapene carolina, is a woodland species found in the eastern and central United States. The Western species, T. ornata, is found in the grasslands of the central United States and northern Mexico. There are also several rare Mexican species. Box turtles are classified in the phylum Chordata, subphylum Vertebrata, class Reptilia, order Chelonia, family Emydidae.

Box Turtle
Eastern Box Turtle, T. carolina carolina
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Reptilia Order: Testudines
Genera
Cuora Pyxidea Terrapene

The box turtle is one of several species of turtles. It can refer to either those of the genera Cuora or Pyxidea, which are the Asian box turtles, or more commonly to species of the genus Terrapene, the North American box turtles. They are largely characterized by having a domed shell, which is hinged at the bottom, allowing the animal to close its shell tightly to escape predators. Otherwise the two genera are very different in habitat, behaviour, and appearance, and as such are not even classified in the same family. Even though box turtles have become very popular pets, their needs in captivity are complex and the capture of turtles can have serious detrimental effects on the wild population.

The box turtle can commonly live up to twenty years, with verified cases of lifespans as long as 40 or 50 years. There have been unverified cases of box turtles living as long as one hundred years and more.^{[citation needed]}

Diet

North American box turtles are omnivores. Their sharp eyes and keen sense of smell help them in finding food such as snails, insects, berries, fungi, slugs, worms, roots, flowers, fish, frogs, salamanders, various rodents, snakes, birds, and eggs. During their first five to six years, the young are primarily carnivorous while they grow. Adults tend to be mostly herbivorous, but they do not eat green leaves.^[1] Box turtles have been known to eat road-kill. Babies and young turtles need more protein and prefer a carnivorous diet, and then include more and more plant matter as they get older.^[2]

Studies

A recent study by Davidson College revealed, among other things, that a box turtle snapping its jaw shut can produce sounds as loud as 75 dB. This sound can be used to scare away predators or possibly even be used as some sort of mating call.^[3]

Mating

While it appears that most Terrapene carolina mating occurs in one-to-one encounters, there are occasions when two males will contend for access to a single female. These encounters are hardly on the scale of mortal combat, consisting of butting, shoving, and perhaps attempting to overturn each other. It is presumed that one of the males eventually becomes exhausted and retires from the field while the other wins access to the female.^{[citation needed]}

Threats

Habitat destruction is the biggest problem facing box turtles. Woodlands converted into farmland have greatly reduced the turtles range in many states.^[4] Remaining land is often fragmented with roads and housing projects, breaking up the animals' habitat. As they try to cross manmade additions, turtles are often killed by cars, animals, and other dangers.^[5]

Another major threat to these animals in North America is the capture and sale of wild-born box turtles. A 3-year study in Texas indicated that over 7,000 box turtles were taken from the wild for commercial trade. A similar study in Louisiana found that in a 41-month period, nearly 30,000 box turtles were taken from the wild for resale. Once captured, turtles are often kept in poor conditions where up to half of them die. Those living long enough to be sold usually suffer from conditions such as malnutrition, dehydration, and infection.^[6][7]

Indiana and many other states have created strict laws against collecting the turtles from the wild. In many states, it is illegal to keep them without a special permit. Collecting box turtles from the wild may cause irreversible damage in the populations, as these turtles have a low reproduction rate and have a hard time finding a mate.^[8]

Most turtle and tortoise societies recommend against box turtles as pets for small children despite their popularity as such. Box turtles are easily stressed by overhandling and require more care than is generally thought. Box turtles can be easily injured by dogs and cats so special care must be taken to protect them from household pets and neighborhood animals. Box turtles require an outdoor enclosure, consistent exposure to the sun and a varied diet. Without these, a turtle's growth can be stunted and its immune system weakened.

Finding box turtles in the wild and taking them as pets, even for a very short period of time, can have detrimental effects. Box turtles want to stay within the same area where they were born. If one is moved more than a half-mile from its territory, it may never find its way back; but may spend years unsystematically searching. This exposes the animal to danger and also disrupts the breeding cycle in which it would have otherwise taken part.^[9]

Taxonomy

Asian box turtles

It has been suggested that this section be split into a new article. (Discuss)

Family Geoemydidae
Genus Cuora

• Amboina Box Turtle, Cuora amboinensis (Suckow, 1798)
• Yellow-headed Box Turtle, Cuora aurocapitata (Luo & Zong, 1988)
• Snake-eating Turtle, Cuora flavomarginata (Gray, 1863)
• Indochinese Box Turtle, Cuora galbinifrons (Bourret, 1939)
• McCord's Box Turtle, Cuora mccordi (Ernst, 1988)
• Pan's Box Turtle, Cuora pani (Song, 1987)
• Three-banded Box Turtle, Cuora trifasciata (Bell, 1825)
• Yunnan Box Turtle, Cuora yunnanensis (Boulenger, 1906)
• Zhou's Box Turtle, Cuora zhoui (Zhao, 1990)

Genus Pyxidea

• Keeled Box Turtle, Pyxidea mouhotii (Gray, 1862)

North American box turtles

Family Emydidae
Genus Terrapene

• Terrapene carolina
  • Florida Box Turtle, Terrapene carolina bauri (Taylor, 1894)
  • Eastern Box Turtle, Terrapene carolina carolina (Linnaeus, 1758)
  • Gulf Coast Box Turtle, Terrapene carolina major (Agassiz, 1857)
  • Three-toed Box Turtle, Terrapene carolina triunguis (Agassiz, 1857)
  • Mexican Box Turtle, Terrapene carolina mexicana (Gray, 1849)
  • Yucatan Box Turtle, Terrapene carolina yucatana (Boulenger, 1895)
• Coahuilan Box Turtle, Terrapene coahuila (Schmidt & Owens, 1944)
• Spotted Box Turtle, Terrapene nelsoni (Stejneger, 1925)
• Terrapene ornata
  • Ornate Box Turtle, Terrapene ornata ornata (Agassiz, 1857)
  • Desert Box Turtle, Terrapene ornata luteola (Smith & Ramsey, 1952)

References

• Reptile Database
• Integrated Taxonomic Information Service
• The Snakes Found in Indiana with Informal Box Turtle information

External Links

• Golden Coin Box Turtle hatches A newborn golden coin box turtle at the Chester Zoo in Chester, England. The baby, one of three to be born at the zoo, is the first of the critically-endangered species ever to hatch in the United Kingdom.
• Ornate Box Turtle - Terrapene ornata Species account from the Iowa Reptile and Amphibian Field Guide
• The Snakes of Indiana, with informal information about box turtles

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