The Common Snapping Turtle; Chelydra serpentina

Identification: The Common Snapping Turtle is the largest turtle you are likely to see in northeastern ponds, lakes, and streams. It can have a shell length of about 20 inches. It's got a thick head and a strong sharp beak of a mouth. The feet are webbed and clawed. The turtle has brown shell with pointed ridges at the back, and a longish tail. It's not what one would call a friendly turtle.

Snappers; Can They Bite off your Fingers? Will They?

It is true, a common snapper has a strong bite, and could theoretically take off your fingers. You should not let this trouble you, as biting off your fingers is not at the top off any snapping turtle's daily to-do list. I have encountered many snapping turtles, and have found that they invariably swim away when you get near them. The only scenario where a snapper is likely to inflict a wound is one in which you attempt to handle him. Which brings us to our next sub-heading.

Snappers; How do you Handle them? Should you Handle them?

Snapping turtles don't take kindly to being pestered. If you try and pick one up, or touch one, it will most likely try and bite you. They have a surprisingly long neck, and can reach almost all they way back over their shells to snap you. They also have sharp claws, and will rake these against you in attempt to get away. These turtles are very powerful; you should not underestimate them. The best choice is to leave them alone. Let them go their own way. There is really only one scenario in which you may want to handle a snapper. That is when you find one stuck in the middle of the road, and you are concerned for it's safety. If you feel driven to play good Samaritan to a stranded snapper, the best way to go about it is to gently nudge it along with some kind of longish implement. A broom, a branch, a shovel, all these will do the trick. With a shovel you could even hasten its journey by gently scooping. If time is of the essence, and the road is busy, you may be forced to deal with the turtle manually. For this, will want to grab it by the very back of the shell, just behind the two rear legs. Don't try and hoist it too high, and don't let your fingers creep up. It will try and bite you.

DO NOT attempt pick up the snapper by it's tail. While this might protect you from getting bitten, it will hurt the turtle. It's worse than picking up a cat by it's tail. Once again, your best approach is to leave the turtle alone if possible.

Snappers; Diet and Attitude

Snapping turtles will eat just about anything that moves. A life long fisherman, I've accidentally hooked snapping turtles on every single type of bait I've used. This includes minnows, worms, salamanders, bread, and even chicken necks. I'm pretty sure they like frogs too, and obviously I found a picture of one eating a water snake. If you accidentally hook a snapping turtle while fishing, you will first think, "my line is stuck." As you pull forcefully and feel the line start to move you will then think "I guess I hooked a log and am hauling it in." Then, at the last minute a terrible looking turtle will pop out of the water snapping it's jaws all over in a menacing fashion. At this point you will be forced to cut the line.

As I mentioned before, snapping turtles do not have the sunniest disposition. Although they avoid humans because we are huge compared to them, they act like jerks any time they can get away with it. I once saw a snapping turtle try and bite a rabbit. The rabbit was grazing about six feet from the water's edge and the turtle climbed out of the pond to try and eat him. Obviously, the rabbit ran away before the snapper made it across the grass, but you have to respect the effort.

Snappers; Why do They Cross the Road?

Once you develop the capacity to easily identify snapping turtles, you will from time to time notice that they cross the road. Other turtles do this too, and it's not the best idea for an organism that moves about .065 miles an hour (estimated). I'm fairly certain they do this to lay their eggs. Did I research this fact? No I didn't. I could be completely wrong. It seems like a good guess, because I've notice that they tend to this in increased numbers at certain times of the year. I accidentally hit a snapper crossing the road once, and I felt awful. I only hit it because at least 12 snappers were crossing at one time, and I couldn't miss all of them. I am sincere when I wish that this never happens to you.