Box turtles share a physical feature with all other turtles and tortoises;
they have a shell that protects their soft organs. Box turtles can
also retract their head and limbs into their shells and close the shell
for added protection. There are two parts to the shell. The top part of
the shell, or the carapace, is a dome made from the actual back bones and
ribs, which have expanded and fused together. The shoulders and pelvic
bones are within the ribcage instead of outside it, as is the case with
humans and other animals with arms and legs. The lower part of the shell
is called the plastron and connects to the carapace on both sides by the
bridge.
Check out these websites for more
information on the box turtle:
http://www.tortoise.org/general/boxcare.html
http://www.soultones.com/turtles.htm
http://www-bio.tamu.edu/users/heather/boxturt.htm
http://healthypet.com/Library/nutrition-7.html
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