Hello Everyone, Sophie here with this month's scaley creature, the Florida box turtle. These cute little guys are one of four species of box turtle in the United States and the only one just found in Florida.
Box turtles get their name because of the specially adapted hinges on their bellies that let them completely close up their head and legs inside their shells. This makes them extra safe from predators.
You can tell a Florida box turtle from the other species by the bright yellow stripes on their shells. They have long, sharp claws on their front legs which makes them good diggers. They spend a lot of time under the leaf litter in the woods hunting for insects and worms.
Florida box turtles spend so much of their time in the underbrush that it's actually rare to see them at all. When they are above ground, they will eat fruits, flowers, and mushrooms.
Compared to most land turtles, which are all actually tortoises, Florida box turtles don't live especially long lives. In the wild they usually live about 25 to 30 years. In captivity, they will live a bit longer.
They don't reproduce until they are around 12 years old but once they do, they lay eggs several times a year. A box turtle nest will have from 2 to 9 eggs that hatch about 45 days later depending on the weather.
The mother turtles don't watch the nest or take care of the babies so most of them get eaten by predators like racoons and snakes. That's sad because baby box turtles are so adorable.
The ones that do grow to adulthood are sometimes eaten by coyotes or bears. People also used to eat them but now the Florida box turtle is protected by the state. They aren't endangered but they are listed as a vulnerable species and there are laws against taking them from the wild.
We found the box turtle I'm holding in the photo crossing the parking lot at a place we were renting last year in Cape Canaveral. (Which was awesome and we even got to see a SpaceX rocket launch!) It was heading back towards the bushy sand dunes at the beach where I'm sure it lived.
Usually, you should just leave these turtles alone when you see them, but I picked him up and carried him across the lot so he wouldn't get run over. They don't get very big and are hard for cars to see. The one in the picture is a full-grown adult.
Box turtles make great pets but the native Florida species needs to be left in the wild. There are other species that are captive bred and you can buy one from a good breeder or smaller pet store. They live a lot longer than dogs or cats so you have to really want to own one and take care of it, which isn't that hard.
Box turtles are quiet and easy to feed and don't smell bad, but I think snakes are more interesting.
Thanks for reading and I'll see you next month with another cold-blooded creature.
Sophie Mckee
Oasis High School, Cape Coral
