Posted on: 2016-05-21 00:00:27
Image by Lisa Zins @ Flickr; used under CC-BY-2.0
The Eastern Box Turtle is North Carolina’s state reptile, and the North Carolina Arboretum is celebrating with its 3rd annual Box Turtle Day!
Just a little aside here: … State reptile??!!? … Is there anything states won’t pick an official representative of? Not that the box turtle doesn’t deserve it. It totally does. I’m just constantly amazed at all the official pies, birds, books, cars, cats, … and reptiles … to name just a few!
Ok. Back to Box Turtle Day.
But Only at the Arboretum
As far as we can tell, this celebration is limited to the Arboretum. It has a series of events planned, including turtle crafts, turtle stories, and meeting one of the resident box turtles, Shelly.
This year’s celebration is today, May 21. If you’re near the North Carolina Arboretum, consider stopping in. The activities look geared towards kids, but kids of all ages should enjoy meeting a box turtle!
We Should Celebrate Box Turtle Day Anyway
If you’re not near the Arboretum but you think a Box Turtle Day is a fantastic idea, celebrate anyway!
If there’s a nature center or turtle rescue near you, maybe see what they think of the idea. Would they consider sponsoring a Box Turtle Day in your area? It could be later this year or next year. Maybe even coordinate with the North Carolina Arboretum!
Wouldn’t it be wonderful if this celebration spread?
After all, different species of box turtle live across much of the country. And the Eastern box turtle is also Tennessee’s state reptile.
Most of the box turtle species are threatened or endangered too (although they’re not officially listed on the endangered species list). So a day to raise awareness of them sounds like a great idea. It could get more people interested in helping to save them.
Remember World Turtle Day, Too
In the meantime, you might also like to celebrate World Turtle Day in just 2 days, on May 23. It’s sponsored by American Tortoise Rescue (ATR) and celebrates all turtles. That includes box turtles!
What do you think? Is World Turtle Day good enough for celebrating box turtles, along with all their cousins? Or do box turtles need their very own National or even World day?