May 23rd is World Turtle Day! We're all about eastern box turtles here at Piedmont Wildlife Center. If you are too, here are five ways you can help this declining species:

#1: Donate to box turtle conservation

Support our box turtle conservation and research efforts by donating at GlobalGiving. Your recurring or one-time donation helps us keep our radio telemetry equipment in tip-top shape, get more people involved in our Triangle Turtle Trekkers citizen science project, and share our research findings with other members of the Box Turtle Connection and beyond.

#2: Don’t purchase a box turtle as a pet

Make a commitment not to buy box turtles as pets or remove them from the wild. The pet trade is a major contributor to eastern box turtles’ status as a species in decline. Not only is it illegal to take box turtles from the wild in NC, but it causes stress and also removes individual turtles from the breeding pool - which means there will be fewer wild turtles in the future.

#3: Become a citizen scientist

Help monitor box turtle populations in NC as a citizen scientist through PWC’s Triangle Turtle Trekkers. Spot a box turtle in your yard, favorite park, or place of business? Snap a photo and upload your sighting to turtletrekkers.org!

#4: Help turtles cross the street safely

If you see a box turtle trying to cross the road (and it's safe to do so), help them across in the direction they're headed. Please don’t put them back on the side of the road they came from, or relocate them to another location. Box turtles have a strong homing instinct and will turn right back around! Don’t worry if there are no ponds, lakes, or streams nearby - box turtles are terrestrial (land-dwelling) turtles and don’t live in water.

#5: Build wildlife habitat in your yard

If you have a yard, consider turning part of it into wildlife habitat for box turtles and other native animals! Make a plan to grow native plants and establish brush piles to encourage box turtles to live in your garden.