Common Box Turtle
The common box turtle (''Terrapene carolina'') is a species of box turtle with five existing subspecies. It is found throughout the Eastern United States and Mexico. The box turtle has a distinctive hinged lower shell that allows it to completely enclose itself, like a box. Its upper jaw is hooked. The turtle is primarily terrestrial and eats a wide variety of plants and animals. The females lay their eggs in the summer. Turtles in the northern part of their range hibernate over the winter. Common box turtle numbers are declining because of habitat loss, roadkill, and capture for the pet trade. The species is classified as Vulnerable species, vulnerable to threats to its survival by the IUCN Red List. Three states have chosen subspecies of the common box turtle as their official state reptile: ''Eastern box turtle, T. c. carolina'' in North Carolina and Tennessee and ''Three-toed box turtle, T. c. triunguis'' in Missouri. Classification ''Terrapene carolina'' was first describe ...
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