Common Box Turtle ²

Common Box Turtles are fully terrestrial turtles - they do not swim. While they are not true tortoises, they do have a similar lifestyle and appearance. They have a highly domed shell, robust walking legs, sturdy claws for digging, and no webbing on their feet. However, box turtles have a special adaptation to their shells that tortoises lack: a hinge. This hinge allows box turtles to completely enclose themselves in their shells when threatened, making them highly resistant to predators. Common Box Turtles have variable coloration, but usually have a dark background marked with yellow, orange, or red stripes on the shell and spots on the legs and head. Males have red eyes, while females have brownish-yellow eyes. Box turtles are omnivores, but their favorite foods seem to be earthworms and fruit.

Sources and Credits

1. (c) Lisa Brown, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), http://www.flickr.com/photos/33695431@N00/3088087497
2. Adapted by hancnaturalist from a work by (c) Wikipedia, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terrapene_carolina

More Info

• iNat taxon page
• Animal Diversity Web
• Biodiversity Heritage Library
• BOLD Systems BIN search
• Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF)
• HerpMapper
• Maryland Biodiversity Project
• NatureServe Explorer 2.0
• The Reptile Database
• VertNet

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