Eastern Box Turtle

About the Eastern Box Turtle

Quick facts

Scientific name

Terrapene carolina^[1][2]

Size

Shell 11 to 18 cm (4.3 to 7 inches) long.^[1]

Lifespan

Can live over 100 years. The oldest recorded was 138.^[1]

Diet

Omnivore. Snails, insects, berries, mushrooms, slugs, worms, roots and flowers.^[1]

Habitat

Open woodlands, pastures and marshy meadows.^[1]

Where it lives

Eastern United States, from southern Maine to Florida and west to Michigan, Illinois, Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas.^[1]

Babies

3 to 8 eggs, usually 4 or 5. Incubation usually lasts about three months.^[1]

Conservation status

Vulnerable (IUCN Red List, common box turtle, assessed 2010).^[2]

Fun facts

• ⭐A hinge in its lower shell lets a box turtle close itself up almost completely.^[1]
• ⭐Box turtles can live more than 100 years.^[1]
• ⭐Nest temperature decides whether baby box turtles become males or females.^[1]
• ⭐A box turtle's shell can heal and regrow even after serious damage.^[1]

Vocabulary

plastron

The bottom part of a turtle's shell.

carapace

The top part of a turtle's shell.

hinge

A joint that lets something open and close, like a door.

hibernate

To spend the winter in a deep, inactive sleep.

omnivore

An animal that eats both plants and other animals.

See it in person

• 📍Montgomery ZooMontgomery, Alabama · Reptile JunctionSee this area on the zoo's website ↗
• 📍Oakland ZooOakland, California · Children's ZooSee this animal on the zoo's website ↗

These zoos had this animal when we gathered our information, but animals sometimes move. Check the zoo's website or contact the zoo before you visit.

Sources

1. [1] Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan Museum of Zoology. “Terrapene carolina (box turtle).” https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Terrapene_carolina/ (accessed 2026-10-02)
2. [2] IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. “Terrapene carolina (Eastern Box Turtle).” https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/21641/9303747 (accessed 2026-10-02)

Facts last checked 2026-10-02.