Snapping Turtle

Chelydra serpentina

by Jackson

Classification

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Testudines
Family: Chelydridae
Genus: Chelydra
Species: serpentina

Physical Description

Common snappers have long tails with spiky protrusions. They have necks that can reach from one half, to two thirds of their rigged shells. Their carapace(top of shell) is about 8-14 inches, though it can grow to be nearly 50 inches. The color of their shell ranges from dark brown to tan and sometimes black. Snapping turtles can not fully retract their heads or limbs into their shells like tortoises. The plastrons(bottom part of shell) of snapping turtles are very small, so their limbs are more exposed, they must rely on biting or scratching aggressively when faced with danger. Snapping turtles weigh from 9 to 35 pounds.

Diet and Feeding Habits

Snapping turtles eat just about anything they can get their mouths around. They eat carrion, invertebrates, fish, birds, small mammals, lots of aquatic vegetation. Snapping turtles are omnivores, or they eat plants and animals.

Reproduction

Snapping turtles are reptiles, so they lay eggs instead of live berth. The mating season is from April to November. After the male impregnates the female, and the eggs have developed sufficiently in the female, she digs a hole in sandy soil and lays up to 83 eggs. The eggs take 9 to 18 weeks to hatch, depending on the weather. The female can store sperm for several years, allowing them to lay eggs every season without mating. Snapping turtles live for about 39 years in captivity, and it is estimated that they live for about 30 years in the wild.

Habitat

The snapping turtle only lives in fresh or brackish water. Preferring water bodies with muddy bottoms and plenty of vegetation for easier concealment.

Role in the Ecosystem

When snapping turtles are fully grown, they are fierce and will bite and scratch and their hard shell protects them. But when they are babies, or are still in their eggs, they have many predators because they are small and their shells are not yet hardened. Their predators include great blue herons, raccoons, skunks, foxes, large predatory fish like largemouth bass, bullfrogs, water snakes, and crows. When they are fully grown, they have little or no predators other than humans. Because humans sometimes humans kill snapping turtles for use in turtle stews or soups.

Bibliography

http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Chelydra_serpentina.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/snapping_turtle