eastern box turtle baby

Description

Eastern box turtle baby have a high, domelike carapace and a hinged plastron that allows total shell closure. Their shell has a middorsal keel that smooths out with age. The carapace can be of variable coloration but is normally brownish or black and accompanied by a yellowish or orangish radiating pattern of lines, spots, or blotches.

Skin coloration, like that of the shell, is variable but is usually brown or black with some yellow, orange, red, or white spots or streaks.

 This coloration closely mimics that of the winter leaf of the tulip poplar. In some isolated populations, males may have blue patches on their cheeks, throat, and front legs. Furthermore, males normally possess red eyes (irises), whereas females usually have brown eyes.

Eastern box turtles feature a sharp, horned beak and stout limbs, and their feet are webbed only at the base.

Eastern box turtles have five toes on each front leg and normally four toes on each hind leg, although some individuals may possess three toes on each hind leg. Eastern box turtles range in size from 4.5 to 8 in (11 to 20 cm) long.