06/25/2026
Box turtles have a home range of about half a mile — and they NEVER leave it voluntarily. They know every log, every puddle, every berry bush. They've mapped their territory over DECADES. If you pick one up and move it even 1 mile away, it will immediately try to walk home. Across roads. Through unfamiliar territory. For months. Most die trying. Box turtle populations have declined 50%+ across the eastern US — primarily from road mortality, habitat loss, and well-meaning people "relocating" them. If you find a box turtle CROSSING A ROAD: help it across IN THE DIRECTION IT WAS HEADING. Set it down 50 feet past the road on the side it was walking toward. That's it. Don't take it home. Don't bring it to a park. Don't put it in your yard (unless that's where you found it). It knows where it's going. It's been going there for 50 years.
