Hatchlings and juveniles at the Damm Farm were always active on days when at least some adults were also active. Fitch (1956b:466) found that, in northeastern Kansas, species of small reptiles and amphibians are active earlier in the season than larger species and that the young of certain species become active earlier than adults. Fitch stated, "... small size confers a distinct advantage in permitting rapid rise in body temperature by contact with warmed soil, rock or air, until the threshold of activity is attained"; he pointed out also that young animals, if able to emerge earlier than adults, would benefit from a longer growing season. Hatchlings and juveniles of _T. ornata_ would benefit greatly from an extra period of activity of say, one or two weeks in spring and a similar period in autumn, especially if food were plentiful. The extra growth realized from such a "bonus" period of feeding would significantly increase the chance of the individual turtle to survive in the following season of growth and activity. Ornate box turtles are active within a narrower range of temperatures than are aquatic turtles in nearby ponds and streams of the same region. Observations by William R. Brecheisen and myself on winter activity of aquatic turtles indicate that, in Anderson County, Kansas, the commoner species (_Chelydra serpentina_, _Chrysemys picta_, and _Pseudemys scripta_) are more or less active throughout the year; although they usually do not eat in winter, they are able to swim about slowly and in some instances (_P. scripta_) even to carry on sexual activity at body temperatures only one or two degrees above freezing. But, ornate box turtles hibernating in the ground a few yards away are incapable of purposeful movement at such low body temperatures. HIBERNATION In northeastern Kansas ornate box turtles are dormant from late October to mid-April--approximately five and one half months of the year. Individuals may be intermittently active for short periods at the beginning and end of the season, however. Once a permanent hibernaculum is selected dormancy continues until spring; unseasonably warm weather between mid-November and March does not stimulate temporary emergence. There is little movement during dormancy except for the deepening or horizontal extension of the hibernaculum.