Reptile & Amphibian Forums

After a lot of thought, and some research, I've decided to hibernate my turtles in the backyard after all. Initially I was worried that they might drown during the winter due to the flooding in my area. However, I remembered reading a comment on this forum that placed Eastern Box Turtles at Island Beach State Park (in NJ) which is quite near my home (and also on a barrier island). I was also told that EBT were once indigenous to this area before it became so built up. So I have decided to fence in a 6x6 ft area in my backyard and fill it up with a lot of soil, mulch and possibly hay... But I'm not sure how deep I should place the wire/wood that I am using as the perimeter. I've noticed that my turtles are great diggers, so I want to make the fence deep enough so that they cant dig out. How deep are your enclosure fences/perimeters? Also, how far down they bury themselves during hibernation? I want to add enough soil, mulch, leaves, etc so that they dont dig all the way down to the water line and end up drowning this winter. Additionally, for you EBT owners in NJ, I was wondering if any of your turtles have already started to hibernate, and if not, when do they start, and when do they come back out? Thanks for any info you can give me!

While I have never been to island beach state park I have a friend who has seen both box and spotted turtles there. As a kid I found a boxie on the beach down by barnegat, very weird. As for your question, I never hibernated my two boxies but I can say that in nj, boxies have not hibernated yet. They're slowing down but I don't think they will begin to hibernate for at least a month. Right now most I have come across are tucked under leaves just chilling out. On warm days they may sit in the sun to warm up some so they can eat. I would start providing some leaves and grass clippings to keep them warm on cooler nights. I'm sure someone on here will help you out with how deep they will go.

Hello again! I think your boxies will enjoy their outdoor enclosure. I am a bit north and inland from you, so it is even a bit colder here. It is hard to say when they will hibernate. They will pop up and down according to the weather. Mine are currently buried in this coolness, but I have seen them up on warm days in October or even early November. However, they will stop eating the end of this month or the beginning of October, before hibernation. I will still offer food, but they know when to stop.
The sides of my pen are about 12-18" underground. 18" is probably better. I will loosen all the soil in their pen to about 18" soon to allow them to dig easily. I have no idea how deep they go in winter (since I don't dig them up and I can't see them). You may want to put a log in their pen for them to bury under or next to. When I am sure mine are underground (November) I put a lot of oak leaves in their pen. The oak leaves do not pack down over winter, but remain "fluffy" with a lot of air space (and therefore insulation). I also cover about 1/2 my pen with a tarp, to reduce (but not eliminate) excess rain, but I don't know if that is necessary. I generally remove a lot of the leaves at the end of March or beginning of April. Good luck, they should be fine.
Also, make sure there is a cover to their pen, especially around the edges. Box turtles are surprisingly good at climbing walls....I lost a turtle because of that mistake a few years ago.

Thankyou for responding! Right now I plan on attaching 4-foot high plywood (or another thin wood) to 4 posts and burying 1.5-2 feet and leaving the remainder 2-2.5 feet as the wall to keep them in. I also figured I would connect the tops of the posts with 2x4s for extra support around the edges. You mentioned their ability to climb, so perhaps I could add a lip to this perimeter to ensure their confinement. In addition to the 1.5-2 feet deep wall, I also plan on adding a lot of soil and plant matter to raise the ground up about an extra foot in the enclosure to keep them further away from the water table. Hopefully that will keep them safe over the winter.

I read that it is a good practice to monitor the location of your turtles during hibernation so that you can dig them up in the even of a major flood (or other disaster). I was wondering if it is safe to dig them up during their hibernation, and if you do so, can you return them to hibernating after the flood has passed?

I keep telling myself this is a better set-up for them but I am still concerned about their survival... I'll be crossing my fingers though, and trying to do whatever I can to keep the enclosure safe and warm for them.
-----
My Kids:
Jack Russel Terrier: Skipper
Miniature Pinscher: Bambi
3 Eastern Box Turtles: Daisy, Dozer, and Magnum (yearling)
1 Red Eared Slider: Rosie
1 Twist Neck Turtle: Lilypad
2 rats: Clementine and Elsie

Woodnative by "burried in" do you mean under a inch or two of leaves. I'm just curious to see if I can still go out and find box turtles in the pines this late. I have in the past up until the first week of october. I always find box turtles to be one of the last ones out of hibernation and first ones in.

Dragonco, mine actually bury into the soil a bit, usually under a piece of sod or some bark. I imagine they may just find a warm pile of leaves in the wild. I think you will definately still find them. I found one behind my work late September or early October last year on a misty, warm afternoon. They seem to not like temps in the 60s at night and "disappear" at those times, but mine continually sun themselves on nice days through October, and the barrens are slightly warmer.

I was a nervous wreck the first year my "girls" hibernated outside. They have been fine the last two winters and I am more relaxed now about the whole situation. Definately add a lip, and perhaps a screen (i.e. chicken wire) cover over the whole thing. The lip is probably ok keeping them in, but it is also good to keep other things (racoons, kids) out, or at least make access more difficult.

Here is the reason why you should keep a outdoor cage fully enclosed. I bought a moultrie spy cam to get pics of possible bobcat tracks. In the meantime I put it by my enclosure to see what mingles around my cage outside. This guy visits almost every night.

I hibernate my box turtles outside in NJ every winter and have never had a problem. I read that they like to hibernate underground in old rabbit burrows. What I did was dig a burrow of my own with a shovel. I used a trenching shovel which makes a smaller hole then a regular garden shovel. I dug it at a 60 degree angle and as deep as the shovel will go (over 3 feet). The dirt from the hole I mound up around the outside of the hole so that if we get lots of rain the water will not run into the hole. During the summer I keep the burrow coved with large slabs of slate so that the turtles do not go into it. Around the middle of October I uncover the burrow. Every year with in 2 or 3 days of Nov 1st the male will climb down to the bottom of the burro. The burrow is very steep but the box turtles have no problem climbing up or down. The Female I have to give her a little push to get moving down the burrow. After they are down I cover the entrance with boards so that no other animals try to use the burrow. I then cover the whole area with lots of leaves (like 2 to 3) feet. The leaves act as insulation and also shed rain and snow water away form the hole. The turtles are now set for the winter. Come April when things are starting to warm up I remove the leaves so that the sun will reach down into the burrow. When I do this I always find the female at the top and under the boards and leaves. I don’t know when she got there, If she just climbed there or has spent most of the winter at the top under the boards and leaves. Because I am not sure were she spends the winter I always make sure that there are lots of leaves on top. The burrow is to deep for me to reach in and pull the turtles from the bottom so they have to climb out on here own. Over the years leaves have fallen into the burrow and I can not see the turtles at the bottom. My male does not come up until some time in May. Each year I start to worry that he did not make it, but he always shows up. The last 2 winters have been extra cool with freezing temperatures for weeks on end but the turtles have always come through in great shape.

I have started to give my turtles a choice in were they could hibernate. I have also now dug a Trench that is about a foot wide and maybe 2 feet long. I dug this down about 2 feet. I then filled in the whole with nice soft compost and mound it up about a 6 inches above the ground. Some of the turtles now dig into this mound and dig there way down to the bottom and hibernate there. Again once they are all in hibernation in Nov. I will cover this Trench with lots of leaves. Both ways have worked for my turtles.

It’s definitely a little scary the fist time you leave the turtles out all winter. But I have never lost a turtle over the winter.
-----
Jack
-----
Jack