Rural School Leaflet 1245 



dark olive, with a network of }:;;reenish or yellow lines on each |)late. 

 The markings give rise to the common names of this species. The 

 broad plastron is wholly or largely yellow, and is notched behind. 

 The soft parts are also striped with greenish yellow lines. A bright 

 yellow comma-shaped spot behind each. eye distinguishes the geographic 

 turtle from Le Sueur's terrapin, which is not found in New York State. 



The geographic turtle is one of the most strictly water species, fre- 

 quenting lakes, inlets, streams, and rivers. Early in April it apiiears 

 from hibernation, and is very often found basking. With its webbed 

 feet it can swim very readily, and because of its sensitiveness to danger, 

 it is one of the most difficult turtles to capture in midsummer. The 

 diet of the geographic turtle seems to be limited to shellfish and molluscs, 

 and, for this reason, it may be difficult to keep this species in captivity. 

 It seldom attempts to use its strong jaws on a person. 



The female seeks out plowed land or sandy places, and in a flask-shaped 

 hole lays two layers of eggs. These are carefully covered, and are usually 

 from twelve to fifteen in number. They are elliptical in shape, and 

 have rather soft shells. In August and September the young hatch, 

 although they occasionally issue from the nest the following April or 

 May. In the fall this species hibernates in the mud of ponds and inlets. 



(g) The box turtle, or tortoise, has a very high, arched carapace, giving 

 it a hemispherical or a globiilar appearance. The plastron has a trans- 

 verse hinge by means of which the animal can close itself up securely 

 within its shell. The carapace is bluntly keeled, and may be brown- 

 black with irregular yellow spots. In the male the rear section of the 

 plastron is concave, and some zoologists state that the males have red eyes. 

 The feet are more or less club-shaped, which suggests the land habits 

 of this form. Box turtles seldom appear in the water, but usually fre- 

 quent dry, moist woods, grassy thickets, tilled fields, and sidehills. The 

 box turtle has a mixed diet, feeding on insects, worms, and plants. By 

 nature it is a timid and harmless creature. When danger appears, it 

 withdraws into its shell, and the front and the rear halves of the plastron 

 completely close over the soft parts. Many box turtles that have been 

 marked on the shells have been seen from twenty to seventy years later, 

 and in several instances, these individuals apparently have not traveled far 

 from the one locality. In captivity box turtles have been known to live 

 from ten to twenty years. During very hot summers these animals 

 temporarily burrow into the moist ground, and in the winter they remain 

 buried in the soft earth. In June or later the female may lay her four 

 to seven eggs beneath leaves or in soft earth, a few inches below the surface. 

 The eggs are oval, about one and one-half inches long, and three-fourths 

 of an inch wide. 



