Other Names of Ornate Box Turtle

Desert Box Turtle

Description

The carapace of the Ornate Box Turtle is relatively broad and oval, usually slightly flattened at the top, and lacks both a narrow keel lengthwise down the center and any flaring at the rear edge. The tallest point of the shell is just in front of the hinge on the plastron, so viewed sideways it’ll be tallest at the front of the turtle. The carapace is dark with many yellow lines, sometimes grouped into “starbursts” radiating downward, and the plastron is dark brown or black with a pattern similar to the carapace. There are almost always four toes on each hind foot. In older specimens of the ornate box turtle, the coloration may be more of a plain brown color.

Habitat

Box turtles are “dry-land” turtles and may be found far from a water body. The ornate box turtle is usually found in open habitats: pastures, prairie and open woodland. This species is most active after rain, especially in drier habitats.

Class:
Reptilia
Order:
Testudines
Family:
Emydidae
Genus:
Terrapene
Species:
ornata
Life span:
30 – 40 years
Egg Gestation:
Females lay 3 – 8 eggs several times a year
icubation normally lasts 3 months
Number of young at birth:
3 – 8
Age of maturity:
8 – 10 years
Size:
Males are slightly larger than females. Average shell length is about 2 – 6 in. long
Weight:
0.5 – 1.5 lbs.

Description:

The turtle’s shell does have a fancy look to it. Each shell segment (scute) has a radiating pattern of yellow lines on a dark brown background.
Habitat: Open woodlands, pastures, and marshy meadows
Range: Eastern United States ranging from southern Maine to Florida along the East Coast, and west to Michigan, Illinois, eastern Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas.

Diet:

Snails, insects, berries, fungi, slugs, worms, roots, flowers, fish, frogs, salamanders, snakes, birds, and eggs

Fun Fact:
Strictly terrestrial turtles