Earlier this summer, Romeoville’s Isle a la Cache Museum welcomed a new ambassador to its team, a hybrid box turtle named Theodore.
Officials at the Forest Preserve District of Will County say Theodore, or Theodorable, as he’s fondly called, is likely the result of someone abandoning a pet eastern box turtle in the wild, allowing it to mate with an ornate box turtle, a state-threatened species.
According to Jen Guest, facility supervisor at Isle a la Cache Museum, releasing pets in the wild can be dangerous.
“It actually can mess up the ecosystem, the native animals that are from here. And then either they can’t survive because it’s not their climate, or they start taking up space and eating the food, or in this case, some animals are compatible,” Guest said.
Hybrid turtle posed threat to ornate box turtle population
Due to his hybrid status, the roughly 9-year-old reptile had to be removed from a Will County nature preserve where he had lived for most of his life, as he became a risk to the ornate box turtles.
“What happens is, if he mates with another ornate box turtle, which is our threatened species, he basically makes another hybrid turtle or more than one hybrid turtle hatchling. And then those keep diluting and diluting and diluting the threatened species,” said Guest.
According to the Forest Preserve District of Will County, only 23 ornate box turtles have been documented in the wild since 2021, three of which have since died.
In a news release, Becky Blankenship, the district’s wildlife ecologist, noted that “an effective population of 300 ornate box turtles is needed to maintain 90% of the population’s genetic diversity over 200 years.”
The continuous dilution of the species due to outside mating could result in them becoming endangered and eventually extirpated in Will County.
“We don’t want that to happen. And it’s not Theodore’s fault, but he couldn’t stay there,” said Guest.
Theodore makes himself at home at Isle a la Cache
After stepping out of the wild, Theodore stepped into his new home at Isle a la Cache.
He now serves as an educational tool for the forest preserve district.
“He’s on exhibit, and we’ll use him to teach the public about endangered species and threatened species and the turtles that live in Will County,” she said.
Guest said that though he’s still getting used to his new home, he’s slowly coming out of his shell.
“We’ll take him out of the tank and walk him around the museum to meet people, so he’s getting used to people a little more. He needs a little more time still, but he’s adjusting pretty well,” she said.
Theodore’s case is a reminder to the public to refrain from releasing pets into the wild, to protect the area’s native and endangered species.
If you have a story idea, we want to hear from you!
