The Eastern box turtle is a humble little dome-shelled turtle native to the Eastern United States. They are a land turtle and do not swim at all. They are more like a tortoise than a turtle actually. They get their name from their fascinating double-hinged shell, which they use as protection when scared. They can retreat their entire body into the shell until the threat has passed. This forms a perfectly sealed turtle package.

Eastern box turtles prefer the temperate deciduous forest. They like low lying forest that is moist. 

Eastern box turtles are omnivores and will eat a huge variety of food. They are opportunistic feeders and have been known to eat earthworms, grubs, snails, slugs, beetles, caterpillars, grasses, fallen fruits, berries, flowers, carrion and even mushrooms. Some mushrooms they eat are poisonous which pass these toxins on to the turtle, making them a danger to eat!

When springtime rolls around, Eastern box turtles start looking for mates. Once they find one, they begin circling one another, biting, shoving, and then finally mating.

When the female is ready, she will dig a hole and lay three to eight eggs and bury them with her hind legs. She then leaves and the eggs develop on their own. The gender of the offspring is determined by temperature rather than an X or Y chromosome like humans.

The ideal range to get a 50/50 mix of male to female hatchlings is about 82 degrees/ If it is cooler than that, there will be more males. Any warmer and there will be more females. In about 3 months, new babies will hatch and in 5-7 years, will be able to reproduce.

Eastern box turtles are very long lived. In the wild, they can reach 50-100 years of age. Older turtles usually have more dull coloration and the plates on their shell are worn down.

Back to hibernation; how do they do it? A few weeks before fall, they will stop eating and begin digging burrows up to a quarter mile away from their summer habitat.

Each burrow can be over a foot deep. Once they are in the burrow they cease all activity and their organs slow down and they live off of energy reserves stored up in the summer. It is very important they store up enough fat and water, if they don’t, they usually die.

It would normally be difficult to get air into a being’s lungs with such a tight shell. Unlike mammals which have a 4-chambered heart, box turtles have a 3-chambered heart. It has a gap in part of the wall in one of the chambers. This means they can recirculate any remaining oxygen and hold their breath for several minutes if needed.