Family: Emydidae, Pond and Box Turtles view all from this family

Description 4-8 1/2" (10-21.6 cm). Terrestrial. Movable plastron hinge allows lower shell to close tightly against carapace. Carapace high-domed and keeled; variable in color and pattern. Plastron often as long as carapace; tan to dark brown, yellow, orange, or olive; patternless or with some dark blotching. Males usually have red eyes and depression in rear portion of plastron; females have yellowish-brown eyes.

Subspecies Eastern (T. c. carolina), carapace brightly marked, 4 toes on hind feet; s. Maine south to Georgia, west to Michigan, Illinois, and Tennessee.
Gulf Coast (T. c. major), largest ssp., not brightly marked, rear margin of carapace noticeably flared, 4 toes on hind feet; coastal plain from Florida panhandle to Louisiana.
Three-toed (T. c. triunguis), carapace tan or olive with obscure pattern, head and front legs orange-spotted, usually 3 toes on hind feet; Missouri south to Alabama and Texas.
Florida (T. c. bauri), carapace brightly patterned with radiating lines, side of head with 2 stripes, usually 3 toes on hind feet; peninsular Florida and Keys.

Breeding Nests May to July. Lays 3-8 elliptical, thin-shelled eggs, averaging about 1 3/8" (35 mm), in a 3-4" (76-102 mm) deep flask-shaped cavity. Hatchlings sometimes overwinter in the nest. Females are capable of storing sperm and can produce fertile eggs for several years after a single mating. Mature in 5 to 7 years.

Habitat Moist forested areas, but also wet meadows, pastures, and floodplains.

Range S. Maine south to Florida Keys and west to Michigan, s. Illinois, Missouri, and e. Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas. Isolated population in extreme se. Wisconsin.

Discussion Box Turtles are usually seen early in the day, or after rain; they often retire to swampy areas during the hot summer months. They are fond of slugs, earthworms, wild strawberries, and mushrooms poisonous to man - which habit has killed many a human who has eaten their flesh. New York Indians are responsible for eliminating this turtle from much of the area between Ohio and New England; they ate Box Turtle meat, used the shells for ceremonial rattles, and buried turtles with the dead. A few specimens are known to have lived more than 100 years, having served as "living records," with fathers then sons carving their names or other family records on the shell. If habitat conditions remain constant, a Box Turtle may spend its life in an area scarcely larger than a football field.