(dramatic music)
- What are you doing?
You're right in the middle of the road!
Do you realize how dangerous this is?
(gasps) Come here, oh, buddy!
Okay, we gotta get you to where you were going.
That direction, come on!
(animal snarling)
They say that the country roads of West Virginia
will take you home to the place where you belong.
And while that might be true in the iconic words
of legendary singer John Denver, these country roads
actually cut right through the home
of its native animal species.
In fact, roadways, no matter how scenic,
are actually the most hazardous threat to local wildlife
in all states across the nation.
It's heartbreaking to comprehend, but thousands of animals
are struck and sadly lose their lives
to vehicles every single year.
And in the spring, turtles, yes,
adorable little turtles who are on their way to lay eggs,
face the ever-looming threat of car tires.
- All right, hazards are on.
(cheerful music)
- [Coyote] Is he alive?
- [Mario] He's alive.
- [Coyote] Oh, oh, no, he doesn't look like he's been hit.
That's an old injury. - No.
So we are in West Virginia.
We just actually got into the state.
Hasn't taken long for us to find some wildlife.
Today there's a lot of turtles actually moving, box turtles.
We're gonna do you a little favor.
Hopefully you stay outta these roads,
but it's very important that you don't interfere too much.
You wanna place them in the exact direction they're going.
Easiest spot is to place it right here.
And yeah, good luck.
- The Eastern box turtle is one of the most common
reptile species in the wild and wonderful state
of West Virginia, and every year between late May
and early July, they are on the move.
This is breeding and nesting season,
which keeps both the males and females
in a constant state of locomotion.
However, as a turtle, that motion isn't exactly speedy.
This time of year, you can see dozens of box turtles
on the crawl and doing their best to cross roadways.
If you're a good turtle Samaritan like me,
there's a good chance you will stop your vehicle
and help a turtle in need.
That's a turtle, yep, another turtle.
- Yep, it is a turtle, right.
I'm gonna put my hazards on
and now I'm gonna pull over to the side.
- Okay.
(whimsical music)
Okay, go ahead, go.
Buddy, you are right in the middle of the road.
This is the most dangerous spot
that a turtle could possibly be hanging out.
This busy roadway, look, we've got a car coming right here.
All right, so this box turtle is headed in this direction,
across the road, into the forest.
And what we're gonna do, wow, this is the biggest one
that we have seen.
Pick this guy up, look at that,
not even tucking into the shell.
That is a perfect box turtle specimen right there.
All right, Mario, you good?
It's headed this direction towards the woods.
Here come cars, let's get over here.
This is probably the one to do a presentation with.
Look at this, not even tucking into his shell.
What a brave little turtle!
Oh, my gosh, I'm so excited.
Now if you were to ask me,
"What is the field guide perfect specimen
"when it comes to the Eastern box turtle?"
This one without question would be it.
Now let's talk about safety
when it comes to helping a turtle across the road.
Oftentimes in the past, I have taught you guys
the right way to move a snapping turtle,
but here in West Virginia, there are box turtles
all over the roads.
You always wanna pull your vehicle to a stop,
put on your hazard lights, and make sure
that there are no cars coming in either direction.
Move quickly, pick the turtle up gently,
and then move it exactly in the direction it was headed.
Even if it's a water turtle, like a painted turtle,
a Blanding's turtle, or a snapping turtle,
if you see a body of water on the side of the road
from where it was coming, don't place it back in that water.
It's likely a female on her way to lay eggs.
Now when it comes to box turtles, they also have
a very small home range, so if you see one of these turtles
crossing the road, you don't wanna pick it up
and take it home with you or move it to another location.
They are very territorial.
Now you may be asking yourself, "Well, Coyote,
"how do you know that this is a male box turtle?"
The males actually have some very distinct features.
First of all, their eyes are oftentimes
very red in coloration, so go ahead and zoom in there
on the eyes of that turtle.
You see how beautiful they are, bright red,
and then the forelimbs, which are the front legs,
are often very vibrant.
Look at that bright orange coloration,
such a proud and handsome turtle.
Now when it comes to the shell itself,
the plastron, which is the bottom of the shell,
if it's a male, is concave.
That's so when they're breeding with a female,
they can mount up on top of the female
and hold themselves in place for that breeding purpose.
I just love the design of box turtles,
and you can see, you're not even tucking into your shell.
That's perfect for us to be able to look at your features.
You see that hind leg, see those long, sharp claws?
Those are very unique.
Box turtles are excellent at digging, and they will forage
through the environment looking for food.
These are opportunistic omnivores, which means
that they will feast upon anything they come across.
It can be plant matter, it can be dead animals,
but they specialize in eating small creatures, like worms,
insects, invertebrates, arachnids make the perfect prey
for a box turtle like this.
Now one thing that makes the box turtle very unique
as compared to other turtle species is its shell.
It gets the name box turtle from the shape of the shell.
The shell is very box-shaped if I hold it like that.
It does have a roundness to the top of the carapace,
but very square in design,
especially if I hold it like this.
Now the box turtle shell is unique in that it is hinged.
Very few turtle species have the ability
to completely tuck themselves into their shells.
Box turtles are one of the species.
Now we have featured the Blanding's turtle in the past,
which has a partially hinged plastron,
but the box turtle specifically is capable
of tucking its head and its legs.
Let's see if we can get you to do that.
You see that, tucking completely into the shell?
Look at that, all the way tucked in.
How cool is that?
Now this works as a defense against any potential predator,
so a raccoon, a coyote, a mink, a fox, anything like that
that would make a meal of a box turtle
is not able to get into the soft parts of the reptile
to make a meal of it.
However, when it comes to a vehicle, the weight
and the power of a car tire can easily crush this shell.
So the biggest danger that a turtle like this faces out here
in the environment is actually man-made systems like roads.
And this time of year, when you have box turtles
moving around frequently, their biggest threat
is, of course, cars.
You've gotta be more careful when you're crossing the road.
These turtles tend to stay to forested areas.
You'll often sometimes find them in meadows,
anywhere that there's a good amount of cool shade
and leaf litter for them to bury down in.
You'll even sometimes find box turtles
hidden underneath logs.
Now a painted turtle or a snapping turtle, a spotted turtle,
a Blanding's turtle, all of those species
spend the majority of their life in water.
Box turtles will go into the water,
but oftentimes, it's just to cool down
or sometimes to actually relieve their bowels
so they can go to the bathroom.
So if you ever see a box turtle,
don't place it into deep water.
They do not have webbed toes, so they can't swim
and can actually drown.
Now one question that I do oftentimes get is,
"Can turtles walk out of their shells
"and then move into another shell as they're growing
"and getting bigger?"
No, they cannot.
No turtle species actually leaves its shell.
The box turtle specifically is unique
in that the way that its shell grows over time, the scutes,
which are these little protective coverings on the back
of the carapace, grow with the turtle over time.
Now a species like a painted turtle, as it grows,
those scutes shed off and then continue to grow underneath,
but the box turtle keeps its scutes its entire life.
And you may be looking at the shell thinking to yourself,
"Well, it's just bone, right, it's solid.
"The turtle doesn't have any feeling in that shell."
No, that is not the case.
The carapace is actually very vascular,
so it can feel touch, it can feel heat,
and if the carapace is injured, it does feel that pain.
The other thing that's unique is that the spinal column
is actually fused inside the back of the carapace
and all of the bone structure is encased
within that protective armor.
This is a very old turtle, a grandfather of the forest,
and they can live close to 100 years in age,
especially if they're in captivity.
And as long as this turtle can avoid predators
and avoid things like roadways, it has the chance to live
to nearly a century in age.
But that is the biggest threat
a reptile like this faces here in West Virginia.
A manmade structure like a road is the true danger
that an elderly turtle like this faces.
So the next time you cross a road,
either do it quickly or try to find an area
where you don't have to cross at all, sound good?
Well, how cool is this?
Saving a number of different box turtles
off of the roads here in West Virginia
and getting the chance to admire this very handsome turtle.
I'm Coyote Peterson, be brave, stay wild.
We'll see you on the next adventure.
(upbeat music)
Well, that's one more box turtle safe off of the road
and into a nice, dense forested area.
Okay, little guy, you be safe out there.
A turtle is very unlikely to survive the weight
and powerful impact of a motor vehicle tire,
and as stewards of this planet, we have a responsibility
to look out for these friendly reptiles,
especially when they are trying to cross roadways.
Turtle saving is a hobby, but don't forget
that safety for yourself and other motorists
is always the first priority.
The world is a better place because of turtles,
and with each one saved, there's a bright future
for the next generation of these incredible reptiles.
The box turtle is a very safe turtle to interact with,
but what if you need to save an angry snapping turtle
from the roadway?
Check out this episode where I show you the proper technique
for moving a mud dragon out of harm's way.
And don't forget to subscribe
and click the notification bell so you can join me
and the crew on our next wild adventure.
(dramatic music) (bear roaring)
(birds chirping)