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Background Four subspecies of the Eastern box turtle are found in the United States:
The Eastern box turtle may reach a length of eight inches at maturity. Its domed shell can be tan, brown, black, or olive. Older turtles' shells are smooth, while juveniles often have concentric growth rings on their shells. The plastron or under-shell appears brown or olive with black markings, and is hinged to close tightly. Male turtles tend to be larger than females, with enlarged claws, concave plastrons, and red eyes. Females' eyes can be grayish brown, yellow, or dark red, and their plastrons are flat, with convex edges. Habitat The box turtle's habitat varies, but it favors open woodlands, meadows, and wetland areas with good cover. Most box turtles develop a permanent home range, which expands as the juveniles mature into adulthood. Ranges can vary from five to twelve acres, and will expand and contract over a period of years. Some transient males never form permanent ranges but travel among isolated populations and mate with females whose ranges are permanent. The box turtle will forage for food during the day, explore its territory, and (depending on the season) mate. At dusk it digs a shallow bed in loose soil or leaf material and rests. Its body is intolerant of high temperatures, so in summer it tends to restrict midday activity and does most of its foraging in the early morning hours. It returns to shaded areas in the afternoon, sometimes burying itself inside rotten logs among leaf litter to insulate itself from the heat. During periods of drought these animals are better able to retain water than some aquatic turtles and they cope with dry spells by burrowing into fallen logs or mud. In spring and fall the box turtle tends to be active at all hours of the day. Box turtles hibernate, but in the Mid-Atlantic region can remain semi-active throughout winter, while northern box turtles begin hibernating as early as late October or early November. During cold snaps in southern regions the turtle will slow down, but never become completely dormant. To prepare for hibernation, the box turtle creates a hibernacula out of loose soil and leaf litter, to which it occasionally adds mud or sand. Colder habitats require a deeper bed, sometimes to two feet. Often it will select an area near other hibernating turtles. After the danger of freezing is past, the turtle will emerge from its bed, depending on its region, between late March and early May. Life Cycle The Eastern box turtle reaches sexual maturity at four or five years of age. In spring, after emerging from hibernation, the turtles begin a series of courtship and mating rituals, which can continue into the summer and the fall, depending on the region. In the first phase of courtship, the male approaches the female to within a few inches and begins holding his head high and possibly lifting one leg slightly off the ground, as the female retracts her head slightly and watches. The male circles the female, and nudges or bites her carapace until she emerges from her plastron. Mating occurs after a complicated series of steps in which the male hooks his feet onto her plastron opening and she closes the shell slightly to grip his claws. After mating the male rests on the back of the female. Some female box turtles will lay several clutches of eggs a year. Before laying, she digs a shallow nest in loamy or loose soil. She lays three to eight eggs with thin flexible shells at intervals of several minutes and arranges them in the soil with her hind feet, then fills the nest loosely with more leaf litter and lies down on it to compress the soil. Incubation usually takes place over a period of 75 to 90 days, depending
on the climate and amount of rainfall. The tiny, grayish hatchlings–not
much more than an inch in length–are vulnerable to predators and
thus remain out of sight as much as possible. Box turtles are omnivorous. They will consume grasses, leaves and fungus, insects, crustaceans, berries, slugs, snails and earthworms. Mature turtles will eat more berries and fruit than juveniles, and sometimes even consume, amphibians, lizards and fish. The biggest threats to adult box turtles are human beings. Turtles are killed by cars as they attempt to cross the road, sold illegally, and their habitats are destroyed by new development projects. It is very important to remember that if you remove or relocate a box turtle found crossing the road, you may be separating it from its territory–and it will make sometimes extreme attempts to return to its home turf. Some studies indicate that if a box turtle is moved more than a half-mile from its territory, it may never find its way home–but it may spend five years unsystematically searching for it. It is also very unwise to mingle wild turtles with other reptiles in captivity, and still more unwise to release them after they've lived for a time as a pet. As it is with so many potential encounters with animals in their native habitats, the best option is to leave turtles alone, and if you see one walking across the street, help it along its way, then move on.
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The
Eastern box turtle is one of the most familiar species of terrestrial
turtles, whose ancestors existed more 200 million years ago. Its sharply
domed carapace or shell, and its habit of closing its hinged plastron
(the underside of the shell) and withdrawing its legs, tail and head
whenever it is disturbed or provoked, are identifying characteristics.
It's less well known that the greatest threat the species faces is posed
by human beings–through habitat destruction, vehicular traffic,
well-meaning relocation, or the common, if misguided, practice of adopting
them as pets.
If
they can survive the first few uncertain years, the box turtle has few
natural predators. Its lifespan in the wild can extend between 25 and
40 years, and some individuals have been estimated to be more than 100
years old. 
