temperature craziness

[ColleenT]

So i have been having weird weather. We just got over a good 10 days of rain and drizzle, and now it has been nice today but tonight will be a low of 41 f. Is that too cold for the box turtles? Wowlowitz seems to dig down into the softer dirt when it gets chilly, but Bernadette just seems to crawl up next to the fern she likes. At what temperature can i start leaving them out at night? Our daytime temps should be 70-ish for now.

ETA- i would not worry if they were used to being out, and they will be out for good once the temps are ok. then they can acclimate to autumn and hibernate. But they had not been outdoors before i built the enclosure.

 

[Eric Phillips]

So i have been having weird weather. We just got over a good 10 days of rain and drizzle, and now it has been nice today but tonight will be a low of 41 f. Is that too cold for the box turtles? Wowlowitz seems to dig down into the softer dirt when it gets chilly, but Bernadette just seems to crawl up next to the fern she likes. At what temperature can i start leaving them out at night? Our daytime temps should be 70-ish for now.

ETA- i would not worry if they were used to being out, and they will be out for good once the temps are ok. then they can acclimate to autumn and hibernate. But they had not been outdoors before i built the enclosure.

If the lows are in the 40s I put them all in their enclosure house filled with leaf litter, if they decide to move to another self thermo regulating spot, that's on them Sometimes 300 million years of evolution overrides my pea brain! I don't worry if the lows are in 50's. As your enclosure begins to take on a life of itself so will your babies.

 

[Maggie Cummings]

Oh my....I bring mine in at night......

 

[mike taylor]

I keep my box turtles and water turtles outside year round . Just make sure the box turtles have a dry place to dig down into at night .

 

[ColleenT]

thanks. they have a den which is above their hibernaculum. the soil is softer bc we put in a mix of organic topsoil , peat moss, and leaf litter. plus some of the original dirt/clay. This week will be warming up but the nights are still on the cold side. i do plan to keep them out forever. But up until now they have not been. I know that once they are out for good, there will be no problems. just didn't know if it was too cold for them at night, yet.

 

[mark1]

i believe like Mike T said , the ground temperature is the most important to them as far as cold nights , i believe the ground right now is between 50-55 in ohio ..... .........as long as you don't use pesticides or fertilizer you could throw a small pile of fresh cut grass clippings in with them , fresh cut grass clippings get hot , i'm sure if it gets cold you'd find them in it , and when it breaks down just mix it in with the dirt .......