Snapping Turtles

[Knobby]

Not sure if anyone else has had this issue of snapping turtles. Just caught this one managing to crawl underneath my fenced run area. At first I thought it was just a black squirrel, when I first saw it from my home office window, but I ran out to catch it once I was able to view it from my binoculars.

In the end, I just relocated it to another pond, further away from the area where I have my flock.

edit: I've just seen all the other threads on other folks' experiences with snapping turtles and will read up..lol

 

[Evadig]

That guy looks mean! We have several in our pond in the back yard. They’re dangerous; one actually killed a raccoon. I’m always worried my dog’s going to meet one in the yard.

 

[Knobby]

That guy looks mean! We have several in our pond in the back yard. They’re dangerous; one actually killed a raccoon. I’m always worried my dog’s going to meet one in the yard.

This one was just a baby...I've caught several almost 5 times as big. I don't tend to dispatch any of them unnecessarily, so I try and just relocate them somewhere else on our property.

 

[Evadig]

He does look small now that you mention it. This is a former inhabitant of our pond; he took the upper beak off one of my previous ducks.

 

[Red Mangrove]

I have a huge snapping turtle in my lake that's entirely covered in algae. At this point it's never harmed a single animal to my knowledge and both of my dogs regularly go swimming in the lake. I think turtles are in general harmless and far more scared of us than we are of them

Usually when the turtle sees me he immediately swims away

 

[Allsfairinloveandbugs]

I have a huge snapping turtle in my lake that's entirely covered in algae. At this point it's never harmed a single animal to my knowledge and both of my dogs regularly go swimming in the lake. I think turtles are in general harmless and far more scared of us than we are of them

I assure you that it's "harmed" animals in your lake, since a small snapping turtle's diet consists of approximately 2/3 meat and 1/3 vegetation. A large snapping turtle is almost entirely carnivorous. The snapping turtle in your lake may not be large enough to eat your dogs, but snapping turtles regularly eat small mammals, waterfowl, etc.
https://a-z-animals.com/blog/what-do-snapping-turtles-eat/

 

[Red Mangrove]

I assure you that it's "harmed" animals in your lake, since a small snapping turtle's diet consists of approximately 2/3 meat and 1/3 vegetation. A large snapping turtle is almost entirely carnivorous. The snapping turtle in your lake may not be large enough to eat your dogs, but snapping turtles regularly eat small mammals, waterfowl, etc.
https://a-z-animals.com/blog/what-do-snapping-turtles-eat/

I'm aware they're carnivores. I meant that it hasn't harmed any of my animals. It's of no concern to me that an aquatic turtle eats fish

 

[Evadig]

I'm aware they're carnivores. I meant that it hasn't harmed any of my animals. It's of no concern to me that an aquatic turtle eats fish

Is it an alligator snapping turtle?

 

[Red Mangrove]

Is it an alligator snapping turtle?

Common snapper I believe. I personally find it beautiful and would never harm it unless driven to by necessity

 

[Evadig]

I used to live in Louisiana…one day, while we were driving near a bayou, we came around a curve and there was a gigantic alligator snapper covered with algae in the road. It was incredible! Too bad I didn’t have my phone or I would have gotten a picture.