Warner Corner - August 2009

Have you seen a Chelydra serpentina lately?
Julie Grecian, Assistant Director

For some reason, snapping turtles keep showing up wherever I go this summer, making appearances on walks, canoe trips, visits to local stores, and other spots. I have been seeing them for years as adults basking in the sun or walking in a strange, slow, prehistoric way across the roads. But this summer, I keep seeing the young ones, which are usually a little more than one inch in length when born.

A few weeks ago, my daughter and I were on a bike ride coming into the town of Willernie when we stopped to watch an adult snapping turtle lay eggs in a hole in the ground on a small patch of grass next to County Road 12. Looking around, I observed it wasn't the most ideal spot for her to lay her eggs but it was an open and sunny patch with well-drained sand and a body of water nearby. Females can travel up to 1 km or .62 miles in search of the right spot to lay their eggs and she chose this roadside ditch!

My daughter watched in fascination and my puppy, thankfully, didn't even notice the jaw-snapping, finger-crushing creature carefully dig a hole with her hind feet and then lay 20 eggs, cover the eggs with sand and return to the water. I loved sharing the special moment with my daughter, witnessing a beautiful act creating the next generation of Minnesota's largest turtle.

Another day I was visiting a nature center in St. Paul and watched an adult snapping turtle that is being rehabilitated and lives in a custom-made swimming pool in their educational building. Since adult snapping turtles can weigh anywhere from 10-35 pounds and have a length of 8-14 inches, I was impressed by the dedication of the staff to care for such a creature on a daily basis. The naturalist shared with us that they decided to adopt the snapping turtle because it was injured and unable to survive in the wild on its own. Unfortunately, this snapping turtle is only one of many in Minnesota that face a host of obstacles for survival.

In 1984, the common snapping turtle was listed as a species of special concern primarily due to the effects of commercial harvesting on local populations. Individuals obtaining a license can harvest snapping turtles without any limit on the number they can catch as long as their carapace (or upper shell) length is greater than 12 inches. A possible concern for population numbers is that peak harvest times usually coincide with annual egg-laying activities. Another challenge for survival is that from any given clutch of eggs, 60-100% of the young may be eaten by predators including raccoons, skunks, foxes and mink. Once born, large fish and frogs, along with northern water snakes and some bird species, will prey on the hatchlings.

A few months from now, I am going to start watching that spot where the snapping turtle laid her eggs along the side of the road. As the young hatchlings enter this beautiful and busy world, I hope they can survive for many years, and in 5-7 years have some young of their own.

If you want to know more about snapping turtles, check out any of the following websites: Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, Minnesota's HerpNet.net or Minnesota's Herpetological Society.

Good luck on your search for snapping turtles but don't get too close!