Found 5 turtles while surveying for them with DNR.
I was driving north on Broadmeade at around 9:00 AM on my way to work when I saw a turtle on the road. The creek is full of Red-eared Sliders and other water turtles, but this was a land turtle. I pulled over to check it out and move it off the road. I decided to take it to the creek and put it down near there where there's more open land and fewer fences. It was moving its legs around while I carried it but it got shy when I took this picture. It's an Ornate Box Turtle that occurs in the central United States. Land turtles have gotten very rare in the last 30 or 40 years, so it was a thrill to find this one right in our neighborhood. I just read the males have red eyes, so I guess it's a "he"!
Terrapene ornata is a species of North American box turtle sometimes referred to as the western box turtle or ornate box turtle.
