Why did the turtle cross the road?
Even though Eastern box turtles have very small home ranges, they are sometimes compelled to leave them briefly to mate, to nest, or to find the perfect hibernaculum in which to spend the winter. These bouts of wanderlust often put them at great risk from their greatest source of mortality: automobiles.
While adult turtles have few predators that can crush their stout carapaces, the shells are no match for a speeding car coming over the crest of a hill. And as more and more roads cut across the Maryland landscape, these turtle-car collisions become more and more common.
What should you do if you find a turtle in the middle of a Reserve road? First, pull over safely with your hazard lights on. Then move the turtle off the road in the direction it was already headed. This is critical; if you put it back on the side it came from, it will only turn around and try to cross the road again, so strong is their drive to accomplish their expedition. Don’ t put box turtles in a pond or stream; they are land animals.
You will see male turtles most often crossing roads in spring in search of females, in midsummer as females hunt for proper nest sites, and again in fall as both sexes hunt for wintering sites if there aren’ t any good ones in their home range. They tend to rest in the shade in the heat of the day and go on walkabout in the morning and early evening. Summer showers often bring box turtles out in some numbers as well in search of puddles to soak in after a long dry spell.
PHOTO: Kerry Wixted
Hatchling box turtles are about the size of a half dollar and don’ t yet have the high domed carapace of adults.
nest predators— the young hatch two or three months later. The temperature at which the eggs incubate determines whether the hatchlings are male or female; higher nest temperatures produce more females. Usually the baby turtles stay in the nest until the following spring.
Hatchlings are vulnerable to many predators, especially free-roaming cats in the suburbs. If they manage to reach maturity, though, box turtles are pretty indestructible. Habitat destruction, forest fragmentation, and illegal collection for the pet trade are the biggest threats to Eastern box turtles.
The Maryland Department of Natural Resources advises that“ There are no good outcomes to removing a turtle from the wild.” Maryland allows residents to take and keep as a pet without a permit only one box turtle from the wild, and it must be at least four inches long. But keep in mind that once you keep the turtle for more than 30 days, Maryland law prohibits you from releasing it back into the wild— the risk of disease acquired in captivity is too high, especially if you keep other reptiles and amphibians. Responsible Marylanders will leave turtles in the wild where they belong and where everyone can enjoy them.
Rick Borchelt is a science, garden, and natural history writer; field naturalist; and lifelong birder who explores nature regularly in rural Maryland. Reach him with questions about this column at rborchelt @ gmail. com.
22 plenty I autumn harvest 2026