Reptile & Amphibian Forums

In my thread on feeding my baby 3-toed, no answer. Maybe folks think old threads have no new messages?

Ken wrote

"Oh, and baby box turtles LOVE pillbugs, sowbugs, potato bugs, or whatever you call them in your neck of the woods."

My question:

Are those the things under rocks and old chunks of wood that curl up? Aren't they a little tough for baby boxes?

Also, with my second T. Herman pic, are the yellow scales on the front legs common in eastern box turtles? how about other types of box turtles?

Yellow (or orange or red for that matter) scales are common on easterns: other box turtles don't have the same wide range of color variations, so you might not see red scales on an ornate.
Here's a link to a photo of a pill bug:

...here's a photo. Oops.

re: pill bugs.

You have to give hatchlings very small rolipolis,
or they may not be able to eat them, as you suggested.

If I give one that is too big, they often chew on them then
spit them out. I have better luck with very small bugs(baby rolipolis).

Pill bugs, sow bugs are great bugs to place in an enclosure for young and adult turtles. They really teach turtles to forage since they come up to the surface often. What I do is place a piece of pond liner, but you could use moist cardboard, in the enclosure with a slice of potatoe underneath it. I place a bunch of pill bugs in the enclosure and they breed like crazy. Hatchlings love to chase them and eat them. The bug you are talking about that curls up with a hard shell has never been a favored item for my turtles. They don't move enough and are like you said hard to eat, especially for hatchlings.

"The bug you are talking about that curls up with a hard shell has never been a favored item for my turtles. They don't move enough and are like you said hard to eat, especially for hatchlings."

Huh? What bug? Rolipolis refer to sowbugs and pillbugs.
My turtles eat both, easily, except for hatchlings, most who
will only eat very small pillbugs. I rarely catch sowbugs
for the babies because they move very fast and are harder
to catch, and I generally see more pillbugs.

Pillbugs, at least the ones around here, still move fast
enough to catch the attention of a hatchling.

Sowbug/Pillbug Info

Where does one find the "bugs" you speak of, since the bugs I mention are NOT for hatchlings?