Turtles are fascinating animals and there are various species of turtles known to exist in the wild environment.One of the species is called the green sea turtle, they are pretty much what their name suggests. These are herbivorous and feed only on green leafy vegetables and plants found in their habitats.Hawksbill turtles, on the other hand, are a species with sharp beaks. This species of turtles hunt their prey from between the corals. These reptiles consume leafy greens and insects. Each species has a different diet. Sometimes they might also feed on Jellyfish.Another known species is the box turtle. These turtles prefer to live on the ground/ sand instead of spending their time below water. This is why it is stated that this particular species is among the few who resemble highly the characteristics and behaviors of tortoises. The box turtles can swim in the water, even though they are not very good at it. These species need water to drink, digest food, soak themselves and defecate. The water is not very deep and must be changed every day if the turtle is kept as a pet. Even within box turtles, there are several species, each having a different pattern and design on its shell.Depending on the species they can range from being 5-7 in (12.5-17.5 cm) long in size. They have dome-shaped shells on their backs which may be dark brown with yellow designs or star-like designs. The eastern box turtle is mostly found near ponds, lakes, and rivers around the eastern side of North America. These eastern box turtles take shelter from the sun when there is extreme heat and are seen as good pets. The metabolism of ornate box turtles is kept at optimum levels when they are exposed to sunlight or UVB lights.Therefore if you plan to keep an ornate box turtle, ensure that it is housed outside in the garden or inside with a UVB light addition to its housing area. Unlike the eastern box turtles, the ornate box turtles are found in places away from water. The ornate box turtles like to live on dry land.After having read all about feeding your box turtle, do check out some interesting facts on box turtle lifespan and can box turtles swim?Box Turtles’ Food In The Wild And CaptivityBox turtles have the distinct ability to seal their shells. Unlike other species, box turtles do not block the opening with their legs, instead are able to cover themselves entirely. Box turtles survive best in conditions that are neither too cold nor too hot and humid.Like many of us, most species of the box turtle are omnivores. This means that these box turtles eat insects as well as vegetables and fruits. If you take proper care of a box turtle’s diet, it can live up to 60 years.While many species of box turtles exist in the wild, only a few of them are commonly kept as pets. These include the eastern box turtle, western ornate box turtle, and three-toed box turtle. Interestingly the box turtle’s diet remains the same irrespective of whether it is in the wild or kept as a pet. As pets, you need to feed box turtles according to their age and size. It has also been found that certain species of box turtles are more carnivorous than others. Therefore, it is important to feed box turtles after knowing the preference of that particular species. Box turtles belong to the cluster of Ornata and are classified as reptiles.There are around six different species of box turtles in the wild and each of them has a different diet plan depending on the exact locality and the temperature of the area where they live. Irrespective of the species, the common things that box turtles eat include fruits and vegetables, tomato leaves, and insects. Hatchlings and baby box turtles are generally more inclined towards the carnivorous side when it comes to feeding. But as they grow older, they become omnivores. Most box turtle’s diets include raw fruits, bell peppers, green leaves, snails, grasshoppers, and the likes as a small snack. All these are components of a healthy box turtle diet.While turtles are free to choose and select their food in the wild, the same is not true for pet turtles. To ensure that pet turtles live healthy lives, it is necessary to provide them with fresh foods. There are foods available in the market that can be used for feeding pet turtles. These packets include calcium powder, vitamins, and minerals.They need to be given a wide variety of fresh foods so that they do not get bored eating the same food every day. They can be fed dark leafy greens, bell peppers, dandelion greens, low-fat food, and some raw insects. All this is important to ensure a balanced diet. Along with the fresh food, a pet box turtle’s diet must also include vitamins and calcium powder.Leafy greens and green beans can also be given. You can also feed eggs to the turtles. Young turtles should always be served with insects, snails or mice either from the gardens or from various pet stores as young turtles are less likely to eat fruits and vegetables. They require a lot of nutrients and therefore a balanced diet is recommended, including calcium powder and vitamins. As box turtles grow, their proportion of food consumption also decreases. It is important to feed your box turtle properly so that all its bodily functions take place and it remains healthy.The health of a baby box turtle can be maintained by giving it fresh food at proper schedules and an appropriate place for shelter. Feeding plants to a wild adult turtle is a simple task. They love to chew green plants at all times. Sometimes, they chew plants just to pass their time. Boxes roam around the plants, seeking small snacks for themselves. Feed your box turtle with appropriate amounts of greens so that its health is maintained and it lives a longer life.What do box turtles eat?Box turtles are omnivores and therefore love eating fruits and vegetables along with snails, grasshoppers, mice, and several other small animals and insects. They love to eat leafy greens, bell peppers, mustard greens, snails, grasshoppers, and other insects.Box turtles eat everything that comes in their way. It is necessary to ensure that you do not keep tomato leaves, avocado, potato leaves, sugar, wheat, or dairy products, and processed meat in front of or around the pet. Turtles love eating meat but they should be given only raw meat. Also, ensure that the cat or dog food is kept out of the reach of the pet turtles. There are a wide variety of things that turtles like to eat but not all of them are good for their health, therefore it is important to keep in mind the food materials that would lead to a balanced diet. It is always best to substitute the packed food with fresh food inclusive of meat, fruits, and vegetables.Adult Vs Baby Box Turtle DietThe young turtle requires small snacks in between the main meals and tends to eat insects. They require a lot of nutrients and therefore a balanced diet is recommended, including calcium powder and vitamins. As box turtles grow, their proportion of food consumption also decreases. What box turtles eat depends highly on their age and species.The hatchlings and young box turtles have an inclination towards raw meat and insects. It has been observed that even if the young turtle is served with meat, fruits, and vegetables, it tends to choose the fresh food item closer to raw meat. The adult turtles on the other hand are quite comfortable and happy eating fresh food irrespective of whether it is fruits and vegetables or raw meat. Another point of distinction between the adult box turtle’s diet and the diet of a young turtle is the number of times the feeding should take place. Young turtles eat small snacks in between all meals throughout the day.Whereas, adult turtles need to eat small snacks as an alternative to one of the main meals. Often the adult turtle consumes a small snack instead of having a full lunch. What remains common in the box turtle’s diet whether it is a young turtle or an adult turtle is that they need a balanced diet. The diet should consist of food rich in vitamins and minerals, calcium powder, and proteins.Can box turtles eat cat food?No, box turtles cannot eat cat food or even dog food. It is a strictly prohibited food item. Always keep them away from the reach of box turtles as they like to taste and consume everything that comes in their way.What they need is to have a balanced diet fit for them. Each animal has food designed specifically for its needs. Just like cat and dog food cannot be consumed by turtles, turtle food is also not consumable for cats and dogs. Everyone has their set of basic needs and a wide variety of vitamins and mineral requirements. The proportions of calcium powder, vitamins, and minerals needed by a cat are different from the proportion required for a box turtle.Foods To Avoid Feeding Your Box TurtleAlthough there are a wide variety of fruits, vegetables, and meat that are fed to the box turtles, it is important to know the food products that are harmful to your turtle. Not all types of meat should be consumed by box turtles. Sometimes you may find it easier to just feed the processed meat that you had bought for the entire family to your box turtle.However, doing so will put the health of your turtle at risk. Turtles must only consume raw meat, not processed meat.Apart from this, certain green leaves are also harmful to your pets. Both young turtles, as well as adult turtles, should not be given tomato leaves and avocado. Turtles tend to eat and taste everything they can reach and therefore it is important to ensure that sugar is out of its reach at all times. Along with this, wheat products like noodles, and bread should also be kept away. All dairy products except eggs should not be consumed by turtles. The key to a healthy life is a balanced diet.The Ideal Box Turtle DietThere is no such ideal box turtle diet. All that you need to ensure that your pet gets a balanced diet and consumes the right proportions of calcium powder, vitamins, minerals, and proteins.Mostly, the balanced diet of pet turtles should include 50% of fresh food like fruits and vegetables/meat and the rest should be a low-fat intake of proteins. This would ensure that the turtle eats the right proportions of all leafy and collard greens along with the exact amount of protein content.Whether it is an eastern box turtle or an ornate box turtle, a balanced diet is essential. Even though baby box turtles are reluctant to eat fresh vegetables, they should be served certain amounts of it so that they become used to the presence of green leafy items and are familiar with fruits and vegetables. None of the species of box turtles, whether it is an eastern box turtle or an ornate box turtle, eat dirt. There are times when it may seem that your eastern box turtle is eating dirt but do not worry the species of box turtles may dig through the sand to find small snacks in the form of insects for themselves. This is their natural instinct and is not harmful. Although research suggests that sometimes the undernourished turtles end up eating first, so make sure you provide your pet with a balanced diet.Dealing With Box Turtles That Won’t EatTurtles might stop eating because they are bored of the food that they are being given or because they do not like it. For instance, young turtles might stop eating if they are not given raw meat. Similarly, adult turtles might stop eating because of the lack of a wide variety of food items.It is important to feed box turtles with a wide variety of fresh food to maintain their appetite and ensure a balanced diet. Turtle food includes the right proportions of vitamins, calcium, minerals, and proteins for the baby as well as adult box turtles. Although the proportion of turtle food to be given to baby and adult turtles may vary depending on the age and size.So feed your box turtle after properly understanding its needs. The most difficult part of feeding your pet is the maintenance of a balanced diet while providing a variety of fresh food. An adult box turtle is recommended to be fed four times a day, each time with a different nutritional component. The schedule should include fruit in the morning (melons/ strawberries), vegetables like green beans, peas, in the afternoon, some leafy green small snacks (Dandelion leaves, collard greens, and the likes), and then dinner could comprise of something with low-fat and high protein such as earthworms and some fresh vegetables.The aim of a balanced diet is to provide your box turtle with around 60% of meat, 30% of vegetables and the last 10% can be covered with fruits. Another much simpler way of maintaining a balanced diet for your pet is to prepare a salad. Feeding salad would ensure that all the components of a balanced diet are taken care of at every meal. For instance, one serving of salad could include a piece of raw meat, two or three leafy green vegetables, and a single piece of any available and preferred fruit. This will also make it easier to remember the feeding schedule and help ensure a wide variety in every meal so that your pet does not get bored. A box might like collard greens and stop eating food if it is instead fed mustard greens.Similarly, a young box would always favor raw meat over mustard greens and collard greens. Therefore, to ensure that the box turtle does not stop eating, it is important to know and observe their eating habits, the likes, and dislikes of your box turtle. There is also a possibility that your box loves eating both mustard greens and collard greens but not green beans. There is a wide variety of possibilities in feeding your pets. It is not easy to determine their favorites since they cannot speak up and point it out to you. The first few years go on experimentally. Observation is the key. Just focus on what food your box turtle picks up first and keep a note of it. There may also be changes in preference for fresh food as the box turtle grows from a young turtle to an adult.A box turtle has a natural instinct of looking for food first thing in the morning. So if your pet is not eating its food, try to reform the feeding schedule and provide it fresh food early in the morning. Continue doing so for a few days. If you still find that the box turtle is not eating anything, then it is best to take it to a veterinarian for a check-up. They should also have proper housing and easy access to appropriate amounts of light and water.Box turtles can survive for as long as 160 days without food. However, they need a constant supply of water and a decent amount of light to survive that long. They are tough, strong animals who live long lives. These animals can withstand hunger for a long period of time, but should not be kept thirsty. People who keep these animals as pets, usually feed them near water so that they are able to digest their food easily. These animals like options and therefore prefer a wide variety of fresh food.Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly facts for everyone to enjoy! If you liked our suggestions for what do box turtles eat then why not take a look at how to take care of a box turtle, or box turtle facts.
Turtles are fascinating animals and there are various species of turtles known to exist in the wild environment.