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Box turtle eggs hatch at 70-140 days. depending on
the incubation temperature. Frequently the hatchlings have visible yolk
sacks. They may stay in the egg shell absorbing yolk for up to 5 days.
Most live off the yolk for a few weeks. During this time they show no
interest in food
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Housing:
Hatchlings are very prone to dehydration.
Because of this I keep mine as semi-aquatics (once they are out of the
egg and moving around). I find this easiest in Tupperware containers
with a substrate of sphagnum moss. I elevate one end and fill it 1/3
with water. When they are 4-6 months old I switch them to a substrate
composed of coconut coir (Eco Earth or Bed-A-Beast), sphagnum moss and
play sand. I use about a half
inch of this mix and keep it fairly damp. I also pile up dried leaves
for them (and the pill bugs etc.) to hide in. When the weather permits they
are put outside in a heavily planted container. Daytime temps should be
around 85 °F under a basking light. The cool end should be around 70 °F.
In small containers it can be hard to regulate the temps. Keep a close
eye on them and use a digital max/min thermometer.
Diet:
They spend the first week or so hidden in the moss. During this time
the rest of the yolk sack is absorbed. At around 10 days they come out
and start exploring. I keep the aquarium dimly lit.
Hatchlings begin eating in 1-4 weeks. They are
strongly attracted to movement. Live bloodworms or
black worms are great
first foods. I feed them in a separate container. These can be
hard to get...sometimes pet shops, that primarily deal with fish, can
order them for you. Frozen blood worms are good as well. When the
weather is right , I put the feeding container outside for an hour or so
in an area that gets dappled light.
Once they are eating well I start using the coir mix
in bigger containers. I still keep one end elevated so there is a "dry"
area and a "wet" section. I keep sow bugs in it at all times. Every few
days I add small crickets or meal worms. I make sure they get sunlight a
few times a week if the weather permits.
Most of mine hatch from June to September. The
following spring I move them to outside containers that are heavily
planted with plantain, clover and dandelion. They are put where
they will get about an hour of direct light
A decent food is mealworms. To grow small ones, take
a 10 gallon aquarium and put a 1/2 layer of wheat germ on the bottom.
Add a few slices of potato and a dozen mealworms. In a few weeks the
mealworms will turn into beetles. A few more weeks there will be tiny
mealworms. Place turnip greens (a leaf or two) on the substrate. The
worms will eat them (high in calcium) and hang onto the underside of the
leaves, making it easy to harvest.
Pill bugs can be raised in a small aquarium with
dried leaves as a substrate (be sure to mist daily). Feed them greens
and bits of fruit. They multiply fast. Harvest the small ones for the
turtles. I have a year round supply of Pill Bugs. I keep some in their
aquarium at all times.
European night crawlers can also be raised for them. More
information can be found at:
http://www.carolinapetsupply.com/how_to_raise_european_night_craw.htm
Be sure to offer small amounts of greens and fruit
daily. They may ignore it for a while...but eventually they will nibble.
What they don't eat is eaten by the sow bugs and worms. All uneaten
vegetable matter is removed after 3-4 hours.
In the wild, 60% or more of the diet is composed of
animal matter. Some of the "animal" matter they eat in the wild
includes: slugs, snails, worms, grubs, caterpillars, beetles, pill bugs,
sow bugs, centipedes, crickets, grasshoppers, spiders, flies, crawfish
and carrion. Essentially, if they can catch it, they will eat it. I have
1.5" hatchlings that will attack adult crickets and worms.
This is a 8 month old Eastern box turtle
feasting on turnip greens
Calcium:
Calcium is important for a growing turtle. However
when provided with a proper diet, and the insects fed are either wild
caught or gutloaded or raised on high calcium food, dusts and
supplements are not needed. I much prefer leaving a piece of cuttlebone
in their pen/cage. It may go un-noticed for a long time, but when the
turtles crave calcium they chow down
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This piece of cuttlebone was left with the hatchling for
about 4 months before they started eating it. As you can see,
its well weathered. Note the chew marks along the front edge.
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Water:
Water is very important to health and normal growth. If its too dry,
the turtles develop shell abnormalities at an early age even when diet
and other conditions are just right. I find mine prefer to spend most of
their time in shallow water hiding and hunting in the sphagnum moss
and/or leaves. I found my first hatchling in the wild about 35 years ago
in a very shallow protected area of a lake. Since that first discovery,
I have found many more in similar areas hunting in the debris at the
waters edge.
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