The yellow-margined box turtle is a small freshwater turtle with a hinge on the lower shell. This hinge allows it to completely close its shell for protection from predators.
The yellow-margined box turtle differs from related species by its bright yellow rim on the shell and the ability to completely close up. It is important for nature because it eats harmful insects and helps spread plant seeds.
Immature form that undergoes metamorphosis before adulthood.
pecking
Worker
birth time
bottom
Dogs, dolphins, lynx hang out for 9-25 years and party on their birthday three times a year
m
Map
will celebrate their {n} birthday
g
t
When your next jubilee falls in {name} life years
Human
Legs count
very hot and very humid all year round, rain almost every day
days
Warm summer
worms
How old you would be if you lived as {name}
Theoretical maximum lifespan estimated from the Dynamic Energy Budget (DEB) mathematical model. This value reflects a biological potential derived from metabolic parameters, not from direct observation — real recorded lifespans are often significantly shorter.
beak
adult
Maturity
plants
invertebrates
insects
About health
When your next birthday would fall if you lived as {name}
Repro interval
results
summer warm, winter not very cold
Carapace size
Colors
Sex
Upcoming jubilees
Gremllins
mo
Uses jaws or beak to break hard-shelled or tough food items.
Uses an excavated underground tunnel or chamber for refuge or nesting.
Trophic type
all living animals without backbone
Filters
Palearctic realm
always hot and humid, huge trees and vines
Upcoming birthdays
Truly long lives: 40-100 years. Bowhead whales, albatrosses, giant tortoises recall their birthday at most once a year
Lifespan
live snails — terrestrial and aquatic
rains almost always, very humid
Age (juvenile)
Age (from birth to death)
Foraging occurs on the floor of aquatic or terrestrial habitats.
Age (embryo)
most of Europe and Asia, various forests, steppes and tundra
Wanderers
Jubilee = every 10th birthday
Warm summer and frequent rains
Earliest developmental stage inside an egg or womb.
Business sausages
fruits
Lifespan average
Egg shell count
leaves
Rapidly swallows prey or food items whole without chewing.
Regeneration
Carapace color
summer warm, rains frequent
What do they look like?
Maturity
emergence (insects)
end of lifespan
How do they live?
fertilization / egg laying
How do they behave?
birth / hatching
metamorphosis / end of larval stage
end of acceleration
Share
swampy freshwater biotopes — peat bogs, marshes, river mangroves
Find a pet...
Mature, fully developed individual capable of reproduction.
Freshwater
gulping
Actively hunting and capturing live prey.
where the river flows into the sea, slightly salty water, lots of fish and birds
Pets
all rivers and lakes
Primary oral structure used to seize, manipulate, or ingest food.
Repeatedly strikes or probes substrate with beak to obtain food.
Head count
Feeding occurs primarily on land or in vegetation.
whole swallow
Legs size
{name} jubilee
cm
Old-timers
Find an animal or breed...
mouth
desert and semi-desert
turns
Rascals
terrestrial forest
olfaction
hot Africa south of the desert, many savannas and forests
Litter size
Map data sources: Ecosystem classification — IUCN Global Ecosystem Typology (Keith et al., 2022), indicative distribution maps Keith et al. (2020), https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3546513; Large Marine Ecosystems — NOAA LME Program; Bathymetry — GEBCO Bathymetric Compilation Group (2026), GEBCO_2026 Grid, https://doi.org/10.5285/4f68d5c7-45eb-f999-e063-7086abc036fa; Climate data — Generated using Copernicus Climate Change Service information; Species occurrence data — GBIF.org, Derived dataset "all animals", https://zveriki.com/dataset/dataset.tsv; Terrestrial ecoregions — RESOLVE Ecoregions 2017 (Dinerstein et al., 2017), CC BY 4.0
How to care for them?
Living from 25 to 40 years. Orangutans, bald eagles, African elephants celebrate their birthday twice a year
snails
°C
Not specified
Actively searching habitats to locate food items.
Where are they found?
all rivers and lakes
Locomotion through water employed while searching for or capturing prey.
Legendary longevity: over 100 years. Galapagos tortoises, Greenland sharks, ocean quahogs celebrate with family once every 4 years
Offspring
Tropical moist forest
Elders
Bro
freshwater marsh and wetlands
Taxons
seeds, berries, fruits
freshwater pelagic
if born as {name}
omnivore
age
birth date
Head size
swimming
Palearctic realm
arid terrestrial biotopes with sparse vegetation
Close
Egg shell color
was
Career from 7 to 15 months. Dwarf hamsters, voles, field crickets celebrate their birthday twice a month
The basics
herbivory, feed only on plant food
My weight?
Non-stop carnival: they only live a few days. Mayflies, rotifers, midges celebrate their birthday more than twice a day
primary food sources
teeth
burrow
Potential Habitat
Very hot summer
d
In husbandry
On the go from 1.3 to 3.5 years. Forest mice, anoles, rainbow fish party on their birthday once a month
Feeding occurs in water bodies such as rivers, lakes, or oceans.
Mass
Plastron color
young shoots and leaves of plants
Mosquitoes, fruit flies, small crustaceans hustle for up to 7 months and throw a birthday party every week
terrestrial
Gestation
from 130 grams to 0.5 kilograms, 0.35 – 0.8 meters
aquatic
vision
summer very hot, above +25…+30 °C
{name} birthday
live annelid worms
Always hot
No results found
On the map
lunge
Female ♀
all life stages
Map data sources: Ecosystem classification — IUCN Global Ecosystem Typology (Keith et al., 2022), indicative distribution maps Keith et al. (2020), https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3546513; Large Marine Ecosystems — NOAA LME Program; Bathymetry — GEBCO Bathymetric Compilation Group (2026), GEBCO_2026 Grid, https://doi.org/10.5285/4f68d5c7-45eb-f999-e063-7086abc036fa; Climate data — Generated using Copernicus Climate Change Service information; Species occurrence data — GBIF.org, Derived dataset "all animals", https://zveriki.com/dataset/dataset.tsv; Terrestrial ecoregions — RESOLVE Ecoregions 2017 (Dinerstein et al., 2017), CC BY 4.0
Potential habitat modelled from GBIF occurrence data. Map © Zveriki.com, licensed under CC BY 4.0.
open water in the water column of a freshwater body, away from the bottom and shore
birth year
Maturity
terrestrial habitat, land surface outside water
Plastron count
sq mm
yr
How similar?
Male ♂
until the celebration
age as {name}
How do they breed?
On the go from 3.5 to 6 years. Hedgehogs, crows, lizards treat themselves to birthday snacks 6 times a year
Legs color
What if eaten?
Neither
What do they eat?
Where do they live?
from birth to death
early young
Hard dental structures used to bite, tear, or scrape food.
forests on land — tropical, temperate, boreal
world of Afrotropics
River estuary into the sea
Freshwater
Temperate mixed forest
Duration
live insects
Always hot and wet
This is me
most of Europe and Asia, various forests, steppes and tundra
freshwater
Always very wet
Gamers
crushing
How are they built?
mm
Theoretical lifespan
ml
Stars
Link copied
My age?
wk
My size?
terrestrial
Carapace count
Asexual
swap
freshwater environment — rivers, lakes, ponds, swamps
active predation
Rabbits, falcons, red-eared turtles hang out for 6-9 years and party on their birthday four times a year
Where do they take shelter?
Warm summer and lots of rain
Head color
celebrated their {n} birthday
When you would have been born if you lived as {name}
very hot all year round, frequent rains, but sometimes dry
Daddies
Lifespan maximum
foraging
Hermaphrodite ⚥
Primarily detects and locates food using eyesight.
embryo
Hard, projecting mouthpart used to probe, pluck, or crack food.
Zucchini
summer warm, many oaks, birches, maples
Length
kg
lots of rain, warm and pleasant summer
Rapid forward strike to seize prey.
Observations
◉{N} more on tap