View Full Version : Turtle species?
What kind of turtle? Rescued it from center of well traveled road in central Mississippi. Mostly pine trees in the area, no ponds/water in sight.33710
Puddlefish
02-18-2016, 21:00
Eastern Box?
4eyedbuzzard
02-18-2016, 21:21
https://nationalzoo.si.edu/Animals/ReptilesAmphibians/Facts/FactSheets/Easternboxturtle.cfm
Ok thank you. Eastern box it is....may it's variant: Terrapene carolina triunguis (three-toed box turtle) lives in the Mississippi River Valley from northern Missouri southward across southeastern Kansas and eastern Oklahoma into south-central Texas, and southeastward across western Tennessee and Georgia to the coastal lowlands
4eyedbuzzard
02-18-2016, 22:47
Ok thank you. Eastern box it is....may it's variant: Terrapene carolina triunguis (three-toed box turtle) lives in the Mississippi River Valley from northern Missouri southward across southeastern Kansas and eastern Oklahoma into south-central Texas, and southeastward across western Tennessee and Georgia to the coastal lowlandsRescued a good size (18") wayward snapper last year from a Home Depot parking lot in Littleton, NH, and took him down to the river bank. Hopefully he found a safe place. Development along the Ammonoosuc River has dried up a lot of the small ponds and wetlands bordering the river and really messed up their habitat.
Where is WingedMonkey when we really need him!
I thought a first that this was a Tipi Walter post.
WingedMonkey
02-18-2016, 23:55
Ok thank you. Eastern box it is....may it's variant: Terrapene carolina triunguis (three-toed box turtle) lives in the Mississippi River Valley from northern Missouri southward across southeastern Kansas and eastern Oklahoma into south-central Texas, and southeastward across western Tennessee and Georgia to the coastal lowlands
Three-toed don't have the bright markings, they are more of a dull brown.
I've seen several eastern box turtles on the AT--I can't recall where now, but they're out there if you keep your eyes open.
Pedaling Fool
02-19-2016, 09:07
I once saved a large Florida softshell turtle ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Florida_softshell_turtle ) from crossing a very busy roadway -- it was relatively easy since I was on my bike and didn't have to find a place to "park". It probably weighed about 30lbs, but the kicking it did once I picked it up made if feel much heavier; I dropped it in the water near a tunnel device to allow it to go under the road -- there was no way it would have survived crossing this 4-lane road with cars exceeding 55 mph.
swisscross
02-19-2016, 10:51
'I want to be a turtle".
I stop and save every turtle I see...
disregard the non turtle photo, could not find way to delete
cmoulder
02-19-2016, 23:25
Eastern Box really gets around... this one in Harriman State Park, NY last summer, looks just like the ones we played with and kept as pets when I was a kid down South.
Moosling
02-20-2016, 00:19
They are wonderful little guys and truly unique in the turtle world being able to completely close up their shell.....I get furious here in NC people intentionally run them over:(
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Eastern Box really gets around... this one in Harriman State Park, NY last summer, looks just like the ones we played with and kept as pets when I was a kid down South.
People keeping box turtles as pets is one of the reasons that they are heading towards extinction in most places.
(Note: not judging--lots of people do dumb stuff as kids, and people didn't recognize the trouble that a lot of species were in until more recently)
cmoulder
02-20-2016, 09:02
Well that was about 50 years ago and there were gazillions of them in the Florida panhandle.
Biggest threat today is probably the same as that for most species: loss of habitat due to human encroachment/development/pollution.
Well that was about 50 years ago and there were gazillions of them in the Florida panhandle.
Biggest threat today is probably the same as that for most species: loss of habitat due to human encroachment/development/pollution.
Habitat loss is the biggest threat to just about all species, but according to IUCN (which lists the box turtles as "vulnerable to extinction"), collection for pets is one of the top threats still. There are no longer mass roundups for the pet trade, but people still take them home and put them in fairly large numbers.
Pedaling Fool
05-05-2016, 13:41
I saved another turtle today as he was crossing the road from a small pond on the golf course. I picked him up because he was just getting into the road and there was nothing on the other side except yards and ocean. Best I can tell it was a Florida Redbelly Cooter https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Florida_red-bellied_cooter
I rode him down the street to a very large pond with a few connecting creeks.
Rescued a good size (18") wayward snapper last year from a Home Depot parking lot in Littleton, NH, and took him down to the river bank. Hopefully he found a safe place. Development along the Ammonoosuc River has dried up a lot of the small ponds and wetlands bordering the river and really messed up their habitat.
I don't know why but I didn't know snappers lived that far north. Best tasting critter in the swamp/
peakbagger
05-05-2016, 21:11
There is large wetland complex near Newport VT which is just east of the end of the Long Trail near the Canadian border. There is road that runs through the middle of it. We counted 35 snappers along the sides and in the middle of the road. Most of them were at least a foot long. They put nests in the gravel along the sides of the road.
I found a box turtle trying to cross the Blue Ridge Parkway one time...I had been trying to get a ride for over an hour but very few cars were passing on that section. I picked the turtle up and moved it to the opposite side of the road and within a minute or two someone stopped and offered me a ride.
imscotty
05-06-2016, 20:25
Please, when rescuing a turtle crossing the road ALWAYS MOVE THEM TO THE DIRECTION THEY WERE HEADING, even if it is away from the water. The turtle was not lost, he was on a mission to do what turtles do (find new territory, lay eggs in sandy soil, etc.). When you return them to the direction they came from, the determined little buggers just turn around and head right back across the street again.
It is such a treat to see the magnificent Eastern Box Turtles, they are getting all too scarce. Unless they need help, the best thing to do with turtles is leave them alone. I came across a Blanding's turtle last year, which was a thrill for me. They are a state listed species in MA.
I've helped a few snappers across the road in my day. They never seem to appreciate my efforts.