Puck (Box Turtles or Box Tortoises)
Terrapene Carolina
These
turtles are native to the United States.
They have a domed shell that is hinged at the bottom making it possible for
the turtle to close its shell tightly to keep predators out. Box turtles are omnivorous eating insects,
worms, grass, fruit and berries. Box
turtles do not travel far from their place of birth. Sadly people will
take them from their homes and then rerelease them somewhere else causing them
to wander aimlessly, trying to find their original home until they die.
One of our box turtles is a Common Box Turtle. He has orange neck markings. He was someone’s
pet, but while allowing him to roam their backyard, the family ran over him
with a lawn mower. He survived with
relatively minor injuries to his shell.