Box turtles are solitary animals that do not vocalize and do not have pheromones, chemical scents, to attract other turtles. I’ve often wondered how they find each other to mate and make baby turtles.

When Ann Berry Somers was 7 years old and growing up in North Carolina, she encountered a box turtle on a path. She picked up the small reptile and looked into its eyes. Instead of retreating into its ...