box turtleany of two groups, Asian and North America and MexicoAmerican, of terrestrial and semiaquatic turtles. Boxturtles Box turtles have a high, rounded upper shell (carapace), a flattened bottom shell (plastron) with a transverse hinge, and ligamentous connections between plastron and carapace (instead of the typical bony bridge . Presumably their vernacular name derives typical of most turtles) between plastron and carapace. Their common name is presumably derived from their ability to totally withdraw draw their head and limbs completely within the shell and close themselves up like a box. The presence of a hinge and ligamentous bridges permits this flexibility. The Their high dome shell and tight closure protects them from predators by making them a mouthful and , domed shell makes them too large for many predators to consume whole, and the tight closure that occurs when all external parts are drawn into the shell makes box turtles difficult to crack open. The Asian boxturtles are members of the genus Cuora and contain eight or more species, all occurring and North American box turtles are not closely related in spite of their overall similarity. Cuora, the Asian genus, is part of family Geoemydidae, and Terrapene, the North American genus, is part of family Emydidae.

Cuora contains nine or more species that occur within subtropical and tropical regions of Asia from northeastern India to southeastern China and southward into the Lesser Sundas Sunda Islands and the Philippines. Cuora Asian box turtles are omnivorous, largely semiaquatic turtles and some spend more time in water than out. Depending that, depending on the species, they have shell ( carapace ) lengths of 13-14 cm to 18-20 cm 13–20 cm (5–8 inches) as adults. They are omnivores. Clutch Each clutch size is typically two eggs, although two to four clutches are often are deposited during a single nesting season.

The Asian boxturtles and the American ones are not closely related in spite of their overall similarity. Cuora is a member of the family Bataguridae and the American Terrapene is member of the Emydidae. These two turtle lineages are related although they have had separate evolutionary histories for more 65 million years since they diverged in the Upper Cretaceous.

The American Terrapene is largely a Terrapene is largely found in cool to warm temperate zone turtle group, occurring regions east of the Rockies Rocky Mountains from southernmost Canada to the Gulf Coast of the United States and somewhat into Mexico. Terrapene are It is strongly terrestrial turtles, although the Coahuila boxturte (CCoahuilan box turtle (T. coahuila) is semiaquatic. The four species of Terrapene have the same range of shell sizes as Cuora and similarly share an omnivorous diet. Terrapene tends ; however, they tend to lay larger egg clutches with the eastern boxturtle clutches of eggs. The eastern box turtle (T. carolina carolina) obtaining lays a maximum of eight eggs in a clutch, although clutches of three or four eggs are more usualtypical.