Common snapping turtle: Difference between revisions

Snapper turtle
	Common Snapping Turtle
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Testudines
Suborder:	Cryptodira
Family:	Chelydridae
Genera
	See text.

Snapping turtles (or snappers) are large, New World freshwater turtles of the family Chelydridae. The species range from southeastern Canada, west to the Rocky Mountains and south through Mexico to Ecuador.

Snapping turtles are noted for their powerful beak-like jaws and pugnacious disposition. They have a muscular build with ridged shells that may measure from 50 cm long in Chelydra species to some 80 cm long in the Alligator Snapping Turtle (Macroclemys temminckii). The latter species is one of the largest freshwater turtles in the world, weighing up to 100 kilograms. The Common Snapping Turtle (C. serpentina serpentina) and its subspecies are much smaller, weighing up to 17 kilograms in weight. Common snapping turtles kept as pets can become quite corpulent and difficult to move, without their co-operation and require frequent cleaning of their water tanks to remain content and healthy. In some areas, they are hunted heavily for their meat. They may live for 80 years or more.

Snapping turtles have long spiked tails and long, flexible necks, which can reach two thirds the length of their shells, making handling dangerous. They cannot fully retract their head and appendages, relying on fierce displays when aggravated. Their snapping jaws and sharp claws are capable of inflicting serious injury. These turtles are best left alone.

Strangely enough, the Common Snapping Turtle, when raised in captivity from a hatchling, can sometimes become extremely docile and devoted to its owner. It may show signs of intelligence in recognizing individual people and will seek out those whose company it prefers. Some can be taught to obey simple commands, with enough patience but this can be a long process ,as Snapping Turtles display the stubborn nature that is a defining characteristic of all turtle species. They are poorly-suited to terrestrial locomotion, spending most of their time in ponds, shallow lakes and streams. Snapping Turtles normally bask by floating on the surface, with only their carapace exposed. Basking on land does occur at times. The belief that they never leave water to bask derives from the fact that they are very secretive about doing so. Other turtle species (Pseudemys, Chrysemys) are much more conspicuous in their basking habits. Rare forays onto land occur in June and July, when females lay their spherical eggs. Male and female snapping turtles also travel overland, to reach new habitat. Pollution, habitat destruction, food scarcity, over-crowding and other factors will drive snappers to travel across land. It is common to find Common Snapping Turtles traveling far from the nearest water source. Some may inhabit brackish environments, such as estuaries. All snapping turtles are omnivores and are important scavengers but they also actively hunt fish, frogs, birds and small mammals. The alligator snapper has a flesh-red, worm-like tongue, which it uses to lure fish into its mouth.

Reproduction

Snapping turtles mate from April through November, with their peak laying season in the months of June and July. The female snapper can hold sperm for several seasons, utilizing it as necessary. Females travel over land to find sandy soil in which to lay their eggs, often some distance from the water. After digging a hole the female typically deposits 25 - 50 eggs, guiding them into the nest with her hind feet, and covers them with sand for incubation and protection. Incubation time is temperature-dependent, ranging from 9 - 18 weeks. In cooler climates, the hatchlings overwinter in the nest.

Handling snapping turtles

It is a common misunderstanding that a snapping turtle may be picked up by its tail, with no harm to the animal. In fact, this has a high chance of injuring the turtle. A handler also needs to be wary of injury to himself. Snapping turtles are aptly named, as they can snap with amazing speed and power and a full-grown snapper can easily nip off a finger. The safest method, of course, is to avoid handling a snapper at all. Lifting a snapper with a shovel is a safe technique that protects both the handler and the turtle. Lifting the turtle just off the ground to move it is advised, as otherwise they can easily squirm and fall off the shovel.

Lifting the turtle with the hands is more difficult. Some snappers can stretch their necks halfway back across the carapace. Manual lifting is best done by sliding fingers behind the turtle's hind legs, with the tail between the hands and gripping the turtle between the fingers and thumbs. The handler then proceeds to lift the turtle only just off the ground. The turtle will probably squirm and try to dislodge the handler's hands with its hind legs. Snappers are often slimy and wet and they are good at causing handlers to lose their grip, so it is best to have the turtle already almost on the ground. The turtle may be covered with a smelly slime and may also defecate or urinate on a handler, who can usually expect his hands to be smelly after carrying a turtle.

Role in political history

The snapping turtle, known commonly and in folklore as the "Ograbme", was the central feature of a famous American political cartoon published in 1808, in protest at the Jeffersonian Embargo Act of 1807. The cartoon depicted a snapping turtle, fervently holding on, with its jaws, to an American trader, who was attempting to carry a barrel of goods onto a British ship. The trader was seen whimsically uttering the words "Oh! this cursed Ograbme", which was Embargo spelled backwards. This piece is commonly considered to be a pioneering work, within the genre of the modern political cartoon.