Desert box turtle

Desert Box Turtle
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Testudines
Family:	Emydidae
Genus:	Terrapene
Species:	Terrapene ornata
Subspecies:	Terrapene ornata luteola
Trinomial name
Terrapene ornata luteola Smith and Ramsay, 1952

The Desert Box Turtle (Terrapene ornata luteola) ranges from the Trans-Pecos region of Texas, New Mexico, and southeastern Arizona in the United States, south into Sonora and Chihuahua in Mexico, where it lives in arid, open prairie areas. It is an omnivore, eating native vegetation, insects, and sometimes carrion.^[1] It lacks the raised keel of the Carolina Terrapins, and its colors are muted for camouflage in the desert. The colors of the mature turtle are lighter and more muted than the colors of the young. Most, but not all, male turtles have red irises. Other characteristics of males include concave plastrons, thicker tails with the cloaca nearer the tip, and longer rear legs with larger, curved inside claws which are used to grip the female shell during mating. Desert Box Turtles hibernate in the winter, emerging in April to begin searching for a mate. Nesting takes place from May to July. Clutch size ranges from two to eight eggs, and incubation lasts about seventy days.^[2] They can live 25 years or more.

Reproduction

Males are normally sexually mature by 8–9 years of age, but in captivity have been known to breed as young as age 2. Females normally require 10–11 years to reach sexual maturity. Their breeding season lasts between March and May, and nesting sites will be chosen from June to July. Males will be sexually active from the time they emerge from hibernation until September or October. Males often mate aggressively with other males. Eggs take an average of 70 days to hatch.

References

1. ^ Desert Box Turtle. Terrapene ornata luteola. Pima County Species Fact Sheet. http://www.pima.gov/CMO/SDCP/species/fsheets/vuln/dbt.html
2. ^ Desert Box Turtle. Terrapene ornata luteola. Pima County Species Fact Sheet. http://www.pima.gov/CMO/SDCP/species/fsheets/vuln/dbt.html

External links

• ITIS Standard Report Page
• Information from the Arizona Sonoran Desert Museum
• Closeup photo of four-year-old male Desert Box Turtle