Turtle

[wildcatcreek]

Thought i'd put this guy on here cause he is just so cool.

[ranger20]

now thats a big tortis

[Wish-I-Were-Fishn]

Big, mean and ugly... but cool!

[Itsa Pole Bender]

You forgot "and tasty too!"

I have bbq'd a few of these back home and they are always a hit.

[Ralph Wiggum]

My dog found one on the beach on Sunday Scared the [PoorWordUsage] outta my wife!

[wildcatcreek]

Does anyone know exactly what kind of turtle this is?

[not_nuf_time]

Looks like a snapping turtle, is what we call them. When they latch on they don't let go.

[mainbutter]

It's a common snapping turtle.

One of my summer hobbies, related to catching fish I guess, is catching reptiles. In the midwest, this is usually limited to mostly turtles.

This guy was fun as heck to catch. Saw him basking on shore while we were fishing. With a little work I got him in the boat with all 10 fingers still on my hand. CPRed of course

I'd put the weight around 50 lbs, significantly heavier than our trolling motor battery. I was quite surprised how heavy they are, must be really dense. Anyone know if the weight comes more from the shell or muscle mass?

[Ralph Wiggum]

Mainbutter, that's a sweet snapper! I'm surprised how clean his/her shell is! Normally, the ones I see are covered in moss.

Here's the one my pup found this weekend. Not nearly as big, but you can see how mossy she is. I saw a lot this weekend. Must be good turtle weather this year!

[reddog]

Cool photos!

The turtles are heading to high ground to lay their eggs in the sand, then they will return to their mossy hangouts.

[almberg]

Anyone know if the weight comes more from the shell or muscle mass?

[crothmeier]

saw a big one on the side of the road diggin her eggs in last night

[HarleyK50]

This guy was fun as heck to catch. Saw him basking on shore while we were fishing. With a little work I got him in the boat with all 10 fingers still on my hand. CPRed of course

You've got some stones man. Those big snappers scare me.

[mrklean]

i had a big snapper in my yard the other day, he wasnt to nice either

[pikestabber]

Mainbutter...weight is almost entirely in the muscle mass and innards. For years I trapped and ate one snapper a year...careful to harvest those that had laid eggs already. The shell is quite light when removed...the meat is delicious!

[BLACKJACK]

Lots of snappers out laying eggs now. Saw two on the way to work yesterday, one on the way home, saw another one this morning. They're lucky that I'm not fond of turtle meat!!