Afraid of Snapping Turtles

SDiego · Mar 3, 2010

Snapping turtles are scary. Common snapping turtle can reach a good distance to bite you. Alligator snapping turtle can't move as far, but they grow to enormous size and a decent-sized alligator snapper can easily sever a finger.

Check out some of these.

Researcher gets tagged by a small alligator snapper -- yes, this turtle is very small for an alligator snapper, if it were an adult, bye bye finger (or fingers). Scary.

Researcher tagged by small one

Powerful bite

This video shows the reach of a common snapper. Look how far back it can go. And listen to the "snap" when he tries to bite this guy.

Reach

Look at these morons. First two got lucky. Third one: this kid is now sorry, I bet they killed the turtle.

Almost tagged

Really lucky

Yep, tagged

Obelisk · Mar 3, 2010

Look at this guy :clap:

http://www.wimp.com/snappingturtles/

Cirith Ungol · Mar 3, 2010

What's next? A thread about scary rednecks?

Shell · Mar 3, 2010

Cirith Ungol said:
What's next? A thread about scary rednecks?

LOL those rednecks sure are terrifiying

Even scarier, a redneck keeping a snapping turtle as a pet!

SDiego · Mar 3, 2010

That video is hilarious.

I feel bad for the turtles though. I really wish they had bit him good. Who stands on turtles?

Galapoheros · Mar 3, 2010

Man that's really hard on their tails, esp. the way he bends them like that. Sounded like he was going to eat them though.

bioshock · Mar 3, 2010

rednecks are dumb as i dont know what always abusing something haha!!

Tleilaxu · Mar 3, 2010

Funny how the OP overlooks that in all the cases the snapping turtles are getting harassed... seriously they are calm when left alone. And pet ones can calm down and behave no worse than normal turtles... I am way more afraid of people, than I ever will be of snappers.

SDiego · Mar 3, 2010

Tleilaxu said:
Funny how the OP overlooks that in all the cases the snapping turtles are getting harassed... seriously they are calm when left alone. And pet ones can calm down and behave no worse than normal turtles... I am way more afraid of people, than I ever will be of snappers.

Far from overlooking it, I specifically said some of these people are "morons." And in response to another video, I further said this was "bad" for the turtles.

Reading is fundamental.

pouchedrat · Mar 4, 2010

Awww I love snappers! I grew up in upstate NY and our backyard had snappers all the time. I remember my mother and our neighbor moving a huge female snapping turtle in a recycling bin, covering it with a shovel trying to get it back to the pond it lived in (she lives in the woods, next to a golf course that actually has strict policies on no one touching the animals that live on there naturally, the turtle lived in one of the water ponds. it was in our yard laying eggs under the trees, where she has a massive garden).

I've moved my fair share of snappers from the middle of the road, too. Although the large ones move themselves, lol.

I do miss them. We never pestered them, we let them be except when they were in our way.

SDiego · Mar 5, 2010

Weren't you afraid of them when you moved them? Their reach is suprisingly far. I wouldn't handle them.

pouchedrat · Mar 5, 2010

Not really, but I grew up around them. We'd also find them on the Erie canal trails while bike riding CONSTANTLY. My father sort of taught us to respect them at an early age, and he showed us how powerful their grip was (stick to the mouth, snapped it pretty fast). I'd grab them around the shell and for some reason they couldn't reach that way, and once they were off the ground, that was sort of it for them. Yeah, I was a weird teenage girl...

I'm just glad it was my mom and dad who showed us to respect the wildlife, because apparently my grandfather regularly would kill them using a shovel to the neck... He lived on a lake across the street from a protected wetland area, and they came over from there.

/edit- I should also state that our high school hatched and grew snappers every year. You know how kindergarteners get baby ducks and chickens? We had baby snappers in high school, lol. They were usually released early on

Herpetologydude · Mar 5, 2010

I love Snappers! Worked with both the Common Snapper species and Alligator Snappers! Such beautiful powerful animals!

It kills me to watch the video with the Dumb A redneck guy though. I'm cool with people catching animals to eat and such but please show some damned respect for the creatures your going to make into food!

kripp_keeper · Mar 6, 2010

I found a snapper stuck under our gate once when we lived I lived in Mississippi. It was very stubborn as it could not fit under the gate, but refused to back up it just kept trying to go under

. It had ants all over it so I poured some water over it to get the ants off(he did not like the water). Finally a net and carried it back to the pond I assume he came from(he did not like the net either).

Fun experience

kripp_keeper · Mar 6, 2010

Herpetologydude said:
It kills me to watch the video with the Dumb A redneck guy though.

Speaking of dumb rednecks.... http://bassfan.com/tv_play.asp?id=119 This guy just pissed me off.

edesign · Mar 6, 2010

SDiego said:
Weren't you afraid of them when you moved them? Their reach is suprisingly far. I wouldn't handle them.

There is a proper way to handle them and many improper ways...learn the correct way and you should be fine. My gf and I have some kind of snapper, doesn't appear to be an alligator snapper though...I was quite disappointed when I figured that out. I had plans to build a home one day with a large moat and a drawbridge around it and toss him in during the summer with a "Beware of turtle" sign. Somehow a 20 pound turtle isn't as intimidating as a 200 pound turtle ha!

Ours like to watch everything and everyone from his tank in the living room. He's quite calm until you get close to his tank at which point he tries to get as close as he can to the glass to get a better look. If you get right up to the glass he will snap at you but I have a feeling that's more of a territorial/defense thing than aggression. Although he would be more than happy to bite you if given the chance...and yes, their necks are extremely long and could be a nasty surprise if you're not aware of it.

No reason to be scared of them unless you happen to be stuck in the middle of a swamp and have to walk out...

Tleilaxu · Mar 6, 2010

My snapping turtle is a big baby, except when he sees his favorite treat, bananas, other than that he is well behaved, no worse than any other turtle species.

Reptiliatus · Mar 8, 2010

Very cool eveyone!

I love Snappers! I live in Ontario so we only have the Common Snappers, no Alligators obviously but they are amazing too.

My friend and I go herping down by this calm river where this one female snapper lives. Were almost positive she's the only one there but managed to mate and has been producing the odd clutch here and there. Apparently snappers are capable of retaining sperm for a few years so fortunately she keeps making babies but none of them seem the survive because there are so many large fish and birds around there.

We only found one hatchling within weeks of searching so we decided to keep it and raise it to a suitable size in which it can be re-introduced to the river. We don't hand feed it, it catches it's own food, minoes we collected from the summer and it's currently "brummating/hibernating", which ever is applicable...

so it has and knows that instinct for when it is released and also will be unable to find it's own food.

Anyways, here's a video I took of her last summer to show people before immediately returning her to exactly where we found her in her river

. Snappers are tricky to handle and don't appreciate it much, so we made this brief. If you can get a good grip of their tail AND support them by holding their PLASTRON, they can be handled safely when neccessary. Never hold one by the tail seeing as this could seriously harm their spine if they squirm alot!

Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JLiYXGEetIQ&NR=1

bitzy1 · Mar 24, 2010

Tleilaxu said:
Funny how the OP overlooks that in all the cases the snapping turtles are getting harassed... seriously they are calm when left alone. And pet ones can calm down and behave no worse than normal turtles... I am way more afraid of people, than I ever will be of snappers.

did you get that quote from steve irwin? it is true though, there is way more to be afraid of in people, murderers, rapists, ect. but acusing a help less animal for defending itself just beacause it felt threatened. the animals were here before us, technically we should be their pets, we are invaiding into THEIR home. awsome thread im redneck but not THAT southern. my whole family is from oaklahoma but i was born in cali.i am THE EXACT OPPOSITE from my family. i love animals so does my family but they prefer to make meals out of them. ever heard of frog legs?? thank god you dont have to be in a family where you are always being picked on for being a tree hugger. i have to deal with my dad making cow noises ever time i bite into a cheese burger. lol. poor turtles!

bball_frk23 · Apr 15, 2010

Redneck Snapper Vid

Best quote from that video: "I try not to smile cuz I got my teeth knocked out by a chainsaw." lol

Afraid of Snapping Turtles

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