My garden visitor
- Thread starter olena
- Start date
amid chaos
DIS Veteran
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- Oct 23, 2000
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- 3,893
I believe it's a box turtle and mark that spot well because he is a she who is burying some eggs.
olena
<font color=green>Emerald Angel<br><font color=mag
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Chris got home and was bummed to have missed seeing it. We looked and looked. A while later, I went back out and found it. Chris was happy to finally get a glimpse. I hope it sticks around. A little garden mascot.....
DixieDreamer
Instant Human
- Joined
- Jan 20, 2001
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- 2,942
She is beautiful. I hope she finds a safe spot to have her brood.
olena
<font color=green>Emerald Angel<br><font color=mag
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I think it's a she. When I found her last night, she was next to a rose bush. I checked this morning and you could tell something had happened at that spot. It wasn't so much a hole, but it was an indentation. Some of the mulch and dirt had been moved around, too. If it's a brood-to-be, I think I'll check the net for what to expect. I will also post what developments I discover.
It's hard to tell in the picture, but she did something there.
It's hard to tell in the picture, but she did something there.
olena
<font color=green>Emerald Angel<br><font color=mag
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WOW! I found this great site about box turtles! This lady raises them. Here's what she had to say:
The adult box turtle ranges in size from about 4¾ to 6¼ inches (120 to 160 mm.) in length, the males averaging larger than the females. This turtle has a black upper shell (carapace) adorned with yellow radiating lines. The width and length of these lines show great variability among different individuals. The lower shell (plastron) is hinged toward the anterior portion and is usually plain yellowish in color. When danger threatens the turtle pulls its head, legs, and tail into the shell and closes the plastron tightly against the carapace. This leaves only the horny, hard shell exposed as the turtle's defense against attack.
These turtles are omnivorous in their dieteating insects, spiders, snails, fruits, flowers, and even toadstools.
I feed them ground horsemeat or hamburger, in captivity. Although primarily land animals, they will eat just as readily under water as on land. One very curious habit this turtle has, is that when drinking water it usually puts its whole head under the water. It does not open its mouth in doing this; so evidently it takes the water in through its nostrils. They may eat every day in warm weather if food is available, but I usually feed them only two or three times a week which is sufficient to keep them in good health. I give them as much as they will readily consume at a feeding which usually amounts to about an ounce of meat per turtle. During cold weather they may refrain from eating for periods lasting several weeks. Baby turtles usually do not start eating until two or three weeks old. They eat the same food as the adult turtle.
Although the box turtle is an awkward swimmer it does like to wade around on the bottom in shallow water. Some of my turtles remain in the 3 inch deep water for days at a time in the 3 square foot pool provided in my pen. One day while I was out scouting along a drainage canal in Dade County I saw a baby turtle, not more than a few days old at the most, on top of some bladderwort (Utricularia) in the middle of the canal. I thought to myself, "Now's my chance to get me a baby water turtle (Pseudemys)." At that moment the turtle took off into the water, but it came back to the top for a few seconds. I jumped into the canal and grabbed the little turtle before it could escape. To my considerable surprise it was a box turtle!
My captive box turtles mated all the year around. They usually mated in the early morning or late afternoon but not uncommonly even in the middle of the day.
The females dug nest holes during all months of the year but most of such activity occurred during the months from March to June. The female box turtle usually begins her nest in the late afternoon, and finishes it after dark. After she has selected a spot she begins scooping out a hole in the ground with her hind feet, using first one and then the othernever the same foot twice in succession. Clifford Pope has told of a turtle digging a nest with a hind foot missing. This turtle went through all the motions of digging with the stub of her leg as if the whole leg were there. The forefeet remain implanted in the ground and act as pivots during the digging of the nest. Sometimes, if the ground is rocky, she may have to abandon her effort to dig a certain nest. She may move a short distance away and begin again or wait until the following day to resume her activities. Some of the captive turtles made many attempts before they were finally satisfied and completed the nest. The opening at the surface is smaller in circumference than the cavity below. After a female box turtle has dug the hole out to a depth of about 2 or 3 inches, she begins laying the eggs, dropping them one by one and gently lowering them into position with her hind feet. My captive box turtles laid anywhere from one to five eggs at a time. The average was 2.65 eggs for 83 nests. Some of these females laid as many as four clutches of eggs in one year. And some of these probably had additional clutches, for they were observed at other times digging nests from which the eggs were not obtained.
I have measured 8-6 eggs of my box turtles. These averaged as big around as a five-cent piece (21.2 mm., varying between 18 and 24 mm.), and in length they averaged twice the width of a ten-cent piece (35.7 mm., varying between 22 and 45 mm.).
After the female has finished laying she covers up her nest in the same way that she dug it, using first one hind foot then the other. When she has completed her nest she may rest a while at the spot or leave immediately. She never inspects her accomplishments, but departs without a backward look. My captives usually headed for the pond and would remain in it for a considerable time. After she has moved away from the nest the spot is extremely hard to find for she has tamped the ground in on top of the eggs making the earth above the nest of the same firmness as the surrounding ground, and then she dragged loose material over the site rendering it inconspicuous. The whole nest making process takes anywhere from about two to four hours. Although the nest may be hard for a human observer to locate, it is no trouble for the scarlet snake (Cemophora coccinea) to find it, at least when the nest is fresh. This little snake works its head and forward part of the body down into the ground, thrusts its head into an egg and devours the contents. Usually two eggs are more than enough of a meal for it. Sometimes the little snake gets into the nest at dark or shortly afterwards, before the turtle has completed covering up her eggs.
If the box turtle's eggs escape the depredations of the scarlet snake there are many other enemies in the wild such as raccoons, skunks, and other snakes which may also destroy them. Too much rain may cause the eggs to rot and if it is too dry the eggs may dry up. When the young turtles begin to hatch, which is in about 60 days under normal summertime conditions, there is danger from ants which sometimes get into the nest as a young turtle begins to emerge from the egg. These ants usually kill the young turtle.
The shortest incubation period I ever observed was 45½ days for one of two eggs kept under artificial conditions. The time may be very long under normal conditions during the colder months. I opened one box turtle egg 120 days after it was laid, and it contained a live embryo developed only little better than half way to hatching size.
Thirty-three of the young box turtles were measured at hatching. Their average length of the upper shell is the diameter of a fifty-cent piece (30.2 mm., varying between 24 and 35 mm ); their average width is less (26.3 mm., varying between 21 and 31 mm ); their average body depth falls just short of the diameter of a ten-cent piece (17.0 mm., varying between 12.7 and 19 mm.). The shell is flexible and rather soft at this time and the navel (umbilical cord) is not healed.
The box turtle grows rather rapidly. In two years it may have doubled its hatching length. Among those observed there was a great variation in growth rates even though all the turtles were kept under the same conditions. They reach sexual maturity in about five years.
That's what this turtle did. She left one spot for another and it looks like she made her nest by my roses. So maybe I'll see some shell babies in 60 days. I am a little worried about snakes though.....if they're around here. Ants are no prob. So we shall see towards the end of August.
The adult box turtle ranges in size from about 4¾ to 6¼ inches (120 to 160 mm.) in length, the males averaging larger than the females. This turtle has a black upper shell (carapace) adorned with yellow radiating lines. The width and length of these lines show great variability among different individuals. The lower shell (plastron) is hinged toward the anterior portion and is usually plain yellowish in color. When danger threatens the turtle pulls its head, legs, and tail into the shell and closes the plastron tightly against the carapace. This leaves only the horny, hard shell exposed as the turtle's defense against attack.
These turtles are omnivorous in their dieteating insects, spiders, snails, fruits, flowers, and even toadstools.
I feed them ground horsemeat or hamburger, in captivity. Although primarily land animals, they will eat just as readily under water as on land. One very curious habit this turtle has, is that when drinking water it usually puts its whole head under the water. It does not open its mouth in doing this; so evidently it takes the water in through its nostrils. They may eat every day in warm weather if food is available, but I usually feed them only two or three times a week which is sufficient to keep them in good health. I give them as much as they will readily consume at a feeding which usually amounts to about an ounce of meat per turtle. During cold weather they may refrain from eating for periods lasting several weeks. Baby turtles usually do not start eating until two or three weeks old. They eat the same food as the adult turtle.
Although the box turtle is an awkward swimmer it does like to wade around on the bottom in shallow water. Some of my turtles remain in the 3 inch deep water for days at a time in the 3 square foot pool provided in my pen. One day while I was out scouting along a drainage canal in Dade County I saw a baby turtle, not more than a few days old at the most, on top of some bladderwort (Utricularia) in the middle of the canal. I thought to myself, "Now's my chance to get me a baby water turtle (Pseudemys)." At that moment the turtle took off into the water, but it came back to the top for a few seconds. I jumped into the canal and grabbed the little turtle before it could escape. To my considerable surprise it was a box turtle!
My captive box turtles mated all the year around. They usually mated in the early morning or late afternoon but not uncommonly even in the middle of the day.
The females dug nest holes during all months of the year but most of such activity occurred during the months from March to June. The female box turtle usually begins her nest in the late afternoon, and finishes it after dark. After she has selected a spot she begins scooping out a hole in the ground with her hind feet, using first one and then the othernever the same foot twice in succession. Clifford Pope has told of a turtle digging a nest with a hind foot missing. This turtle went through all the motions of digging with the stub of her leg as if the whole leg were there. The forefeet remain implanted in the ground and act as pivots during the digging of the nest. Sometimes, if the ground is rocky, she may have to abandon her effort to dig a certain nest. She may move a short distance away and begin again or wait until the following day to resume her activities. Some of the captive turtles made many attempts before they were finally satisfied and completed the nest. The opening at the surface is smaller in circumference than the cavity below. After a female box turtle has dug the hole out to a depth of about 2 or 3 inches, she begins laying the eggs, dropping them one by one and gently lowering them into position with her hind feet. My captive box turtles laid anywhere from one to five eggs at a time. The average was 2.65 eggs for 83 nests. Some of these females laid as many as four clutches of eggs in one year. And some of these probably had additional clutches, for they were observed at other times digging nests from which the eggs were not obtained.
I have measured 8-6 eggs of my box turtles. These averaged as big around as a five-cent piece (21.2 mm., varying between 18 and 24 mm.), and in length they averaged twice the width of a ten-cent piece (35.7 mm., varying between 22 and 45 mm.).
After the female has finished laying she covers up her nest in the same way that she dug it, using first one hind foot then the other. When she has completed her nest she may rest a while at the spot or leave immediately. She never inspects her accomplishments, but departs without a backward look. My captives usually headed for the pond and would remain in it for a considerable time. After she has moved away from the nest the spot is extremely hard to find for she has tamped the ground in on top of the eggs making the earth above the nest of the same firmness as the surrounding ground, and then she dragged loose material over the site rendering it inconspicuous. The whole nest making process takes anywhere from about two to four hours. Although the nest may be hard for a human observer to locate, it is no trouble for the scarlet snake (Cemophora coccinea) to find it, at least when the nest is fresh. This little snake works its head and forward part of the body down into the ground, thrusts its head into an egg and devours the contents. Usually two eggs are more than enough of a meal for it. Sometimes the little snake gets into the nest at dark or shortly afterwards, before the turtle has completed covering up her eggs.
If the box turtle's eggs escape the depredations of the scarlet snake there are many other enemies in the wild such as raccoons, skunks, and other snakes which may also destroy them. Too much rain may cause the eggs to rot and if it is too dry the eggs may dry up. When the young turtles begin to hatch, which is in about 60 days under normal summertime conditions, there is danger from ants which sometimes get into the nest as a young turtle begins to emerge from the egg. These ants usually kill the young turtle.
The shortest incubation period I ever observed was 45½ days for one of two eggs kept under artificial conditions. The time may be very long under normal conditions during the colder months. I opened one box turtle egg 120 days after it was laid, and it contained a live embryo developed only little better than half way to hatching size.
Thirty-three of the young box turtles were measured at hatching. Their average length of the upper shell is the diameter of a fifty-cent piece (30.2 mm., varying between 24 and 35 mm ); their average width is less (26.3 mm., varying between 21 and 31 mm ); their average body depth falls just short of the diameter of a ten-cent piece (17.0 mm., varying between 12.7 and 19 mm.). The shell is flexible and rather soft at this time and the navel (umbilical cord) is not healed.
The box turtle grows rather rapidly. In two years it may have doubled its hatching length. Among those observed there was a great variation in growth rates even though all the turtles were kept under the same conditions. They reach sexual maturity in about five years.
That's what this turtle did. She left one spot for another and it looks like she made her nest by my roses. So maybe I'll see some shell babies in 60 days. I am a little worried about snakes though.....if they're around here. Ants are no prob. So we shall see towards the end of August.
Maleficent2
DIS Legend
- Joined
- Sep 15, 1999
- Messages
- 15,453
do you have the link to the turtle site?
We always resue them when they are on the road and bring them home to live in our garden but alas we usually never see them again.
What a cool thing to be happening in your garden.
Mal
We always resue them when they are on the road and bring them home to live in our garden but alas we usually never see them again.
What a cool thing to be happening in your garden.
Mal
olena
<font color=green>Emerald Angel<br><font color=mag
- Joined
- May 12, 2001
- Messages
- 22,566
Turtle Power! LOL
Box Turtle Info
The Private Life of the Box Turtle
I laughed at the second site. She wasm't in a very private spot. I'm glad she moved. I think her eggs will fare better. I'm sure she was partial to the mulch though.....good cover. It had also just rained.
Box Turtle Info
The Private Life of the Box Turtle
I laughed at the second site. She wasm't in a very private spot. I'm glad she moved. I think her eggs will fare better. I'm sure she was partial to the mulch though.....good cover. It had also just rained.
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