baby Florida Box Turtle

I found this recently hatched turtle under the hose reel by our garage. I leave fruit outside for the adult box turtles that hang around.

Oh my gosh, is he cute, LOL! You can tell it's a baby with those big eyes, lol.

~Kris

Ahhh! He's so cute!

I have box turtles, too, but I didn't know they liked fruit. Anything in particular? Just leave it on the ground in their area (and hope the other critters don't get it 1st)?

I learned that Box Turtles liked fruit, when I found one under my fig tree eating the ripe figs that had fallen. I've been putting out the strawberry tops lately.

OH Heavens Cheryl... what don't you have in that back yard sanctuary?? LOL

cutie lil turtle.

Oh, what a beauty he/she is. Thanks for the info.

Well, now that explains why I keep seeing box turtles hanging out in the veggie and fruit section of my cottage garden. In that area I grow strawberries, blackberries, grapes, blueberries, figs, apples, and peaches. The grapes, apples, and peaches are all espaliered on the fence - which just happens to make them convenient for the wildlife who eat everything. The blueberries are dwarf plants only 1ft tall, and the strawberries and blackberries are growing on the ground. Almost every time I pull weeds over there I find a large box turtle. He must be very well fed. ;-)

Thanks again for the very useful information.

LOL, at you Terese. Were you following the Heidi thread back when I started to worry about what was going to step out of the forest next (while I was sitting back there alone)? I think that was around the time the the opposum showed up. When I certified my backyard cottage garden as a wildlife habitat they took me seriously. So far I've hosted: raccoons, opposums, deer, rabbits, turtles, snakes, butterflies (including a few varieties not know to exist in my area), hummingbirds, a great blue heron, a flock of ibis, about a dozen mallard ducks, a peacock (yes, I have photos), and all manner of birds. I'm sure I've left somebody out.

Here is a pic of one of my turtles. I didn't know what he/she was eating so I tried to feed it dog food and freeze dried grubs: http://davesgarden.com/forums/fp.php?pid=1834064
Mostly, I think it just wanted me to go away: http://davesgarden.com/forums/fp.php?pid=1834089

Box Turtles are opportunistic feeders..anything they find is fair game...what my DH says, "protein is protein" our turtle, Prince...loved fruit..canteloupe, was his favorite, and he adored the figs from our tree...

Wow, did Prince have a red head and neck! He's very unusual looking!

~Kristy... missing my old pet turtles.

We had Prince for more than 20 years we had an enclosure made for him in the yard. Some idiot left the gate to his pen open, and he escaped...either that, or he was taken....either way, he is gone..I miss him terribly.

Awwwww, I'm sorry melvatoo. That's terrible. I had a box turtle named Leonardo (like the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, lol), when I was a kid. I had him for a few years. One time we put sand in his tank and he REALLY didn't like that! He was trying to climb up the glass of the aquarium to get out! Recently, I had a red-eared slider named Speedy. We had him for several years in a big tank, but he just kept growing. We couldn't afford an even bigger tank (and didn't have room for one, either), so my dad said we should let him go in a lake. I didn't really want to, but no one I knew would take him and we couldn't keep him. We let him go and I think he'll do fine in the lake. But I miss him. He didn't do much, but he was cute and funny.

~Kris

Thanks...I am sure Leonardo will do just fine...and I can only hope that whoever has Prince, take good care of him...we spoiled him rotten...before we had the pen, outside for him, he lived in the house, so we got pretty close.
http://philmc.com/mlw/prince.htm

This message was edited Jul 8, 2007 2:54 AM

Oh my gosh, that webpage is so cute, melvatoo! His expressions are hilarious! I think Prince will be okay, too - whether he's in the wild or living with a turtle thief! My dad's friend has a box turtle that lives loose in their house. He comes and stares at the fridge when he's hungry, too! I never heard of letting turtles roam around free in the house. Weren't you afraid of stepping on him?

I think Speedy will be okay. Like I said, he was in a big tank, but he had gotten pretty big himself. He couldn't turn around in there very well. When we let him go, he swam right to the bottom of the lake. Then I called his name and he came back up and peeked out of the water. Then he swam away and we could tell he was happy, cause he had a HUGE lake to swim in! He was swimming all around and wiggling his little legs like crazy, LOL! So, that makes me feel a bit better. I just worry about him finding food, cause he was kinda stupid, LOL! But there are more than enough fish and plants for him to eat. I wonder if I went back to the lake and called his name if he'd come up again? It hasn't even been a month since we let him go.

Here's a pic of Speedy smiling.

~Kris

Prince, did have a lot of red on his face and neck...I have never seen another turtle marked, quite like him.
Never really worried about stepping on him....he usually stayed close to the walls...although, there were times when we would step in evidence that he did not Always, stay by the walls!

This message was edited Jul 8, 2007 7:07 PM

This message was edited Jul 8, 2007 7:10 PM

LOL, yep, I was wondering about that, too. Wonder if you could train them to use a box, like a cat?

~Kris

I asked my DH about litter box training a turtle...he thinks it would take years to train them, if, at all...

Yeah, it seems like they don't pick up on things real easy, does it? lol.

~Kris

Hi,,, am going over and do a search and try to learn more about this guy. I "rescued" him from my pond today.. again, again, and again. I was worried he might drown. Guess not.. LOL
Elaine

Elaine, Is the shell domed? Or is it flat? It looks in coloration like a Western Box Turtle but in the picture, the shell looks flat like a water turtle....

It is definitely domed.... and I think I know why he keeps going back to the "goldfish pond".. he is looking for a meal.. but the fish are pretty big..??? read that he has a hinged jaw though.
Elaine

Yeah, he looks like a box turtle. I don't know what kind, though. I didn't know they could swim! How cool! I would've rescued him again and again, too, Elaine, lol!

~Kristy

Boxies would eat fish...but it is unlikely they would catch one...wonder what she was doing? I think it is a girl...unless the eyes are red?
and yes, Box Turtles can swim ...

This message was edited Jul 8, 2007 8:46 PM

Maybe it just wanted to go for a swim? hehe.

~Kris

I must have the cousin of your swimming turtle. I have a shallow (about 10" or so) fiberglass pool that I keep finding a box turtle in. I suppose he/she comes by for a drink and then falls in and cannot get back out because of the sloped and slick sides of the pool. I just pluck the little guy out and send him on his way with a scolding only to find him back in there a few days later. I think what I will have to do is make a "turtle ladder" out of flat rocks so that he can get out on his own. LOL

Well I have pots in the pond and some sloped rocks to climb out. She is hanging out tonight in the pond. She was swimming around the edges like she was eating algae or..maybe mosquito larvae.. We finally had rain.. praise the lord....
Elaine

Is it able to close the shell completly? DH says if it is a Box Turtle it would have a hinged shell, that can close..

Elaine, maybe the turtle is hanging out in the water trying to stay cool.

The turtle is in the water because it is thirsty. They will also eat canned cat/dog food. Usually box turtles with the fierce red/orange eyes are male. You can tell the sex of a turtle by simply turning it upside down. If the bottom shell has a "cup" in it then it is a male. If it is flat, then it is a female. The reason for the cup is so the male can mount the female and not slid off her shell. Box turtles also like snails, slugs, centipedes, millipedes, frogs, etc. Whatever is out there is what they will eat. Because it is so dry in TN we put out shallow bowls (sunk into the dirty to the rim) in the woods filled with water for the turtles. LIZ

We still have "Alberto", the baby Box Turtle, that we found at the beginning of July. Its stays buried, in a bed of pine mulch, about 22 hours a day, but comes out, explores, and soaks in a shallow water bowl. Its eating canned cat food. We are keeping it in a wire covered tub on the lanai. One end of the tub is shaded, so it can get out of the sun.

mmm, think it can close shell completely.. will check sex tomorrow. Rescued her/his friend off the road the other day. His neck coloring was a lot more yellow, he/she was bigger. Didn't check the eye color.
Alberto is very cute...

This message was edited Jul 17, 2007 8:57 PM

Awwww, they're all adorable, hehe.

~Kris