#Eastern Box Turtle

[ruija]

April encounters some strange turtles.

Everyday I think about how cute irl turtles are and yearn to hug them. I'm coping by drawing April doing it instead.

[antiqueanimals]

Don Balke (b. 1933), Turtle, 1986, gouache on board.

Invaluable

[orofeaiel]

Eastern Box Turtle

[violetsandshrikes]

everyone, add their special week to your calendars nowwwwww 🐢

[uncharismatic-fauna]

Uncharismatic Fact of the Day

For the eastern box turtle, there really is no place like home! Most individuals live their whole lives within a 2.5 sq km (1.5 sq mi) area- roughly the size of two football fields. Given that eastern box turtles can easily live upwards of 50 years, that's a long time to call one little patch of land home!

(Image: A Florida box turtle (Terrapene carolina bauri) by the Everglades National Park Service)

[specimentality]

I LOVE seeing healthy turtles in the wild :D like omg hi ma’am did you know I’m your biggest fan? I love you!!! Keep eating your breakfast and stay safe pleeeeeease <3

[snototter]

An Eastern box turtle (Terrapene carolina carolina) in Emmanual County, Georgia, USA

by Alan Cressler

[lynnswirld]

variation of the shell colors and patterns of the eastern box turtle

[famouspersonaname]

Eastern Box Turtle

Chesapeake, VA 2025

[ruija]

More adventures with demutated turtles. I can't get over when basking sliders and softshells stretch out their legs, it looks so silly and cute. Mikey's behavior is inspired by videos I've seen of box turtles climbing up their owners for... affection? Or maybe just a bite.

[northerlyy]

Eastern Box Turtle (Terrapene carolina ssp. carolina), juvenile, taken May 25, 2024, in Georgia, US

Literally the most tiny and pathetic thing I have ever seen in my LIFE. Its eyes are too big for its tiny turtle head!!! It was in my front lawn moving Southeast, maybe for spring migration purposes, so I helped it across the road. When I picked it up it let out the most tiny and pathetic squeak of a hiss I have ever heard. Absolutely precious.

[sunfish-exotics]

Doggies say bye to turtle!!!!

[uncharismatic-fauna]

Do you have any cool things to tell us about eastern box turtles?

Do I ever!

There are a few things that make box turtles as a group pretty special. For starters, even though they're turtles, they are entirely terrestrial; they spend almost their whole lives on land and can't swim very well. Secondly, they're called box turtles due to their unique shells. In addition to being very high domed, the underbelly (or plastron) has a 'hinge' so that, when the turtle is frightened, it can pull its head and limbs in and close up its shell completely-- just like a box!

(Image: An eastern box turtle (Terrapine carolina) by Ben Wurst)

As for eastern box turtles specifically, they are the state reptile for Tennessee and North Carolina in the United States. They have an incredibly small home range, typically not more than a few square kilometers, but they have a very powerful homing sense and can orient themselves even when moved miles away from their habitat. Lastly, unlike many other turtle species, the best way to distinguish between males and females is by eye color! Males have bright red eyes, while females have duller brown eyes.

(Image: A male eastern box turtle by Rylie Strasbaugh)

[zoology-time]

Eastern Box Turtle (male, concave ventral shell), Terrapene carolina carolina

[ego-sum-arbor]

Box turtle making questionable decision to lay eggs right next to my cucumber

[wyrmologyart]

Here's a recent commission that I did! A naturalist working at a nature center contacted me about planning displays for their turtle exhibits, and obviously I am 200% down for drawing turtles because they're my favorite animal. Where I live I never actually see true eastern box turtles, the three-toed subspecies is more common here. Being paid to draw a turtle for an actual nature center is like a dream come true. The plan for this piece is to have it printed on a wood panel and have the scutes (sections of the shell) laser cut into puzzle pieces so it's an interactive display! So cool! I also made a coloring page version for them to print for their guests. The nature center is in another state so I may have to make a little trip someday just to see it.

I will be having this piece made into postcards and maybe stickers for my Etsy shop :)