Reptile & Amphibian Forums

It got up to 60 degrees today and one of my 3-toed boxies was out prowling. She wouldn't eat, and wasn't in a very big hurry, but she was out. I was surprised to see her this early. Another mild freeze possible for early next week.

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Greg Jackson

My eastern box turtle appeared yesterday too and the night time temps are predicted to be in the 20's. He's pretty sluggish -- what should I do?

>>My eastern box turtle appeared yesterday too and the night time temps are predicted to be in the 20's. He's pretty sluggish -- what should I do?

As I told Greg, it would be a good idea to bring the turtle indoors so it is not caught above ground when the cold snap occurs. It may be too sluggish to bury deep enough to protect it from freezing weather. Once slightly warmed, let it soak in some water-look for any signs of illness at this time. Are the eyes OK? Is there a lot of weight loss? Is the skin red or peeling?

If all is well you can put the turtle back outside when you have a window of decent weather so it has time to dig down again.
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Tess Cook
www.boxturtlesite.info

Thanks for the advice. I brought him in - I soaked him and decided to keep him inside til the weather warms. He's sluggish and hasn't been able to open his eyes.

Greg, is that a picture you took the day she came out? The grass looks green. Depending on where you live, a turtle may not reach a state of deep torpor and may come out if it is thirsty. Be sure to have water available at all times if you live in the warm southern or coastal areas of the US.

If you expect a sudden cold snap and she has not reburied herself-just bring her in for a few days. No need to keep her warm and do not feed her, but let her soak in a shallow pan of water. Put her back ousidet when the danger is over and there is a window of decent weather and see if she will dig down again.
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Tess Cook
www.boxturtlesite.info

I had one of my hatchlings from 2008 come up in mid January. I think that that little one has some "season confusion". He/she spent all last winter indoors being fed and prepared to be placed in my outdoor enclousure. I noticed that one of the two hatchlings I put out last spring spent alot time buried throughout the summer. I suspect that that little turtle was the one that came up in mid January. I kept a good watch on my "winter turtle" and buried it back under some loose soil and about 8 inches of leaf litter later that afternoon. I've seen no sign of him/her since.

See the "Winter Turtle" thread below for some pics.
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Vichris
"The object of life is not to be on the side of the majority but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane"- Marcus Aurelius

On the other hand, I have never encountered this: plenty of head started youngsters have gone on to hibernate normally and have survived well on their own.

Young turtles spend much of their time hiding during the warmer months because they are so vulnerable, so that behavior may not have anything to do with emerging from hibernation mid-winter.

>>On the other hand, I have never encountered this: plenty of head started youngsters have gone on to hibernate normally and have survived well on their own.
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>>Young turtles spend much of their time hiding during the warmer months because they are so vulnerable, so that behavior may not have anything to do with emerging from hibernation mid-winter.

The only reason I mentioned it was because the other sibling was almost as active as the rest of my adult turtles.
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Vichris
"The object of life is not to be on the side of the majority but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane"- Marcus Aurelius

Different turtles definitely have different personalities.

Food for thought: some in research community have noticed that juveniles remain more active in colder weather than do their adult counterparts. This is mostly anecdotal, but still worth noting.

That's interesting, Steph. I have noticed the same thing. When I do happen to find hatchlings that have come from nests that I've missed, it is almost always in very cool, rainy weather after the adults have dug in for the Winter. I have found hatchlings roaming about in nearly every month of the Winter. Of course, our Winters are normally fairly mild, this year being an exception.

Yup...there is some speculation that EBT hatchlings may be able to survive being frozen for short periods, like some other (hatchling) Emydid family members are able to do.