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Eastern box turtles feature a sharp, horned beak and stout limbs, and their feet are webbed only at the base. Eastern box turtles have five toes on each front leg and normally four toes on each hind leg, although some individuals may possess three toes on each hind leg. Eastern box turtles range in size from 4.5 to 8 in (11 to 20 cm) long.
The desert box turtle, also known as the Sonoran box turtle, (Terrapene ornata luteola) is a subspecies of box turtle which is endemic to the southwestern United States and northern Mexico. They are generally terrestrial but occasionally take to the water and are most known for their boxy shell and its structural integrity.
The ranges of some 34 salamander species, 15 species of frogs and toads, 21 species of snakes, 13 turtle species, and 6 lizard species extend into some portion of the state. Two of these — the Cheat Mountain salamander and West Virginia spring salamander — are endemic to West Virginia.
A 3-year study in Texas indicated that over 7,000 box turtles were taken from the wild for commercial trade. A similar study in Louisiana found that in a 41-month period, nearly 30,000 box turtles were taken from the wild for resale, many for export to Europe. Once captured, turtles are often kept in poor conditions where up to half of them die.
When you acquire a pet turtle, you may not know what its gender is. The gender is determined by the temperature during the incubation of the egg – cooler produces males; warmer produces females.
Even though box turtles became very popular pets, their needs in captivity are complex and the capture of turtles can have serious detrimental effects on the wild population. [ 1 ] The box turtle commonly lives over twenty years, with verified cases of lifespans exceeding 40 to 50 years.
In the United States, around 2.3 million households are home to reptiles, including turtles. Here's what the reptile can and cannot eat.
Common box turtles are official state reptiles of three U.S. states. North Carolina and Tennessee honor the eastern box turtle, [14] [15] [16] Kansas adopted the ornate box turtle in 1986. [17] [18] In Pennsylvania, the eastern box turtle made it through one house of the legislature, but failed to win final naming in 2009. [19]