Common Snapping Turtle Natural History

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Common Snapping Turtle Chelydra serpentina Natural History Description: This is the largest and heaviest turtle both in Minnesota and Wisconsin. Adult snapping turtles weigh 10-35 pounds, but some have been weighed at more than 50 pounds. The brown carapace is usually covered in algae and has a saw-toothed back edge. The often yellowish-colored plastron is greatly reduced, leaving the limbs very ex- posed from the underside. The tail supports a row of jagged dorsal scales and is nearly as long as the carapace. The head has large jaws and a pointed snout with a prominent beak. Its long neck, powerful jaws and aggressive behavior have rightly earned the snapping turtle its name. Males are larger in size than females, and their tails are proportionally longer. Hatchlings are dark brown to black and bear small white flecks on their undersides. They are highly aquatic turtles, which often lie on the bottom in shallow water, extending their long necks just far enough to keep their nostrils and eyes above the surface of the water. Vocalizations: Snapping turtles make a hissing sounds when threatened. Breeding: Snappers reach sexual maturity at the age of five. Mating occurs from April to October. Females lay 20-30 white, leathery eggs in June which hatch after 50-125 days. Distribution: They range from Maine and adjacent Canada west to Montana and south to New Mexico and southern Florida. Snapping Turtles have been found in western states, but these individuals are thought to be the results of unwise releases of pet turtles. Habitat: They make their homes in permanent bodies of freshwater including ponds, lakes, marshes, rivers, creeks, and sloughs with muddy bottoms and plenty of vegetation. Diet: They will eat anything that swims by including insects, crayfish, clams, worms, leeches, fish, amphibians, reptiles, carrion, and aquatic plants. The are nocturnal omnivores. Lifespan: Adult Snapping Turtles have few predators other than humans and may live to be 50-75 years old. Besides cars, the only dangers are to the hatchlings and eggs, which are eaten by raccoon, skunks, fox, snakes and much more. Conservation Status: In Minnesota and Wisconsin, as well as in other parts of their range, they are considered to be a species of special concern due to their long lifespan and the unknown im- pacts of both commercial harvest and environmental toxins. Range Map Reference: MN DNR website .

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The Common Snapping Turtle, Chelydra Serpentina
The Common Snapping Turtle, Chelydra serpentina Rylen Nakama FISH 423: Olden 12/5/14 Figure 1. The Common Snapping Turtle, one of the most widespread reptiles in North America. Photo taken in Quebec, Canada. Image from https://www.flickr.com/photos/yorthopia/7626614760/. Classification Order: Testudines Family: Chelydridae Genus: Chelydra Species: serpentina (Linnaeus, 1758) Previous research on Chelydra serpentina (Phillips et al., 1996) acknowledged four subspecies, C. s. serpentina (Northern U.S. and Figure 2. Side profile of Chelydra serpentina. Note Canada), C. s. osceola (Southeastern U.S.), C. s. the serrated posterior end of the carapace and the rossignonii (Central America), and C. s. tail’s raised central ridge. Photo from http://pelotes.jea.com/AnimalFact/Reptile/snapturt.ht acutirostris (South America). Recent IUCN m. reclassification of chelonians based on genetic analyses (Rhodin et al., 2010) elevated C. s. rossignonii and C. s. acutirostris to species level and established C. s. osceola as a synonym for C. s. serpentina, thus eliminating subspecies within C. serpentina. Antiquated distinctions between the two formerly recognized North American subspecies were based on negligible morphometric variations between the two populations. Interbreeding in the overlapping range of the two populations was well documented, further discrediting the validity of the subspecies distinction (Feuer, 1971; Aresco and Gunzburger, 2007). Therefore, any emphasis of subspecies differentiation in the ensuing literature should be disregarded. Figure 3. Front-view of a captured Chelydra Continued usage of invalid subspecies names is serpentina. Different skin textures and the distinctive pink mouth are visible from this angle. Photo from still prevalent in the exotic pet trade for C.
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WILDLIFE IN CONNECTICUT WILDLIFE FACT SHEET Common Snapping Turtle Chelydra s. serpentina Background Snapping turtles are widespread in Connecticut. Their ability to adapt to J. FUSCO © PAUL people and the state's changing landscape has made them evolutionarily successful. Snapping turtles can even be found in polluted waters and urban wetlands, although populations in these habitats may not be robust. Range Snapping turtles range across the eastern United States to the Rocky Mountains, from southern Canada to the Gulf of Mexico, and into Central America. They have been introduced in some western states. Description Connecticut’s largest freshwater turtle is easily spiders, worms, fish, frogs, small turtles, snakes, birds, recognized by its dark carapace (upper shell) with a crayfish, small mammals, and carrion. Plant matter deeply serrated back margin, and a small plastron accounts for about a third of the diet. Young turtles will (bottom shell) that does not completely cover all of forage for food, but older turtles often hang motionless in the animal's flesh. Three low keels (or ridges) on the the water and ambush their prey by lunging forward with carapace of younger turtles often become obscure as the head at high speed and powerful jaws to seize prey. the turtle matures. The carapace measures 8-12 inches on an average adult, and the turtles can weigh between Life History 10-35 pounds. The carapace can vary in color, from Sexual maturity has more to do with size than age. green to brown to black; sometimes it is covered with Turtles are ready to mate when their carapace measures moss.
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