Petting Turtles
- Thread starter Blacksmith101
- Start date
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The largest snapping turtle I have ever seen in my life is named Gigantor and lives in Silver Lake in Rehoboth. He lives by the Tot Lot and gets fed from the pedestrian bridge. that goes over the lake Actually, it would be more accurate to say that about 100 painted turtles, giant carp, and Gigantor get fed from this bridge. But everything in the lake defers to Gigantor. His head is larger than many of the other turtles. I almost think he is an Aligator Snapping turtle but other than size I do not know how to tell the difference and Delaware seems a little far north for them. His shell could easily be two feet wide or more.
Alligator snapping turtles have three big ridges that go front to back on the their shell. They kind of look like mountain ranges. Common snapping turtles shells tend to be smooth.
smokey
2A TEACHER
- Jan 31, 2008
- 31,520
Better than the elk and bison at yellowstone. These two were dicks. They kept stamping their hooves and snorting at me. The bison came up on my right while I was on a motorcycle and started getting all pissy (apparently they're in a fighting mood come mating season). He was a large fella.
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whistlersmother
Peace through strength
yes, i did wash my hands. that friendly cus lives in God knows what. i'm just glad it decided not to cross the road again.I hope you washed your hands afterwards. Old snapping turtles usually have all sorts of nasty stuff growing on their shells. We have an alligator snapping turtle, not native to MD, in the neighborhood that has a shell that is 20 inches wide and weighs, I'M guessing, about fifty pounds. One big mother. I actually measured his shell but wasn't going to attempt measuring it lengthwise.
I have had to help him across the road a few times. When people driving by see me, they get out of their cars to watch but no one ever asked if I needed help.I suspect that someone a long time ago had him as a pet and turned him loose in the marsh.
i heartened to read they prefer to bask in the water and not on land. other than crossing the road, maybe it'll stay off of it.
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I've seen at least three squished snappers on the sides of the roads in the past couple days, and had one in my yard. For the ones that are squished just off the road, I have to imagine that people are intentionally trying to run over them, unless there are that many sh!tty drivers that can't keep it between the lines
KevinK
Ultimate Member
learn?
But then they might sue the state parks for not having warning signs on the turtle.
But then they might sue the state parks for not having warning signs on the turtle.
It's not just the snap you have to worry about with those guys.... five of a turtles six ends are dangerous. You don't want to get racked by their claws either.... will mess up your afternoon, and almost assuredly be primed for a serious infection.
OP did a good deed for that little girl... it's not her fault that her father is stupid.
OP did a good deed for that little girl... it's not her fault that her father is stupid.
It's safe enough to carry them by their tails. And about the snappy heads - it's not just the jaws that are lightning fast, but they can crank their necks nearly a full 90 degrees almost as quickly, so it's best just to stay away from the front end all together.
-Rob
-Rob
On the large ones, grabbing the tail and supporting the lower shell is also an acceptable method. As some one already pointed out, you have to look out for their feet also. The are very strong so if the foot touches something, they can jerk themselves out of your grasp and/or turn towards you in a heartbeat.
Rebel59
Hater of Kings and Queens
A lot of little coves and creeks where I grew up. We used to play with those things and some guys had them as pets. These were the smaller ones you could catch in the cat tails and along the banks, the big ones never came to shore. Everyone knew to avoid the business end. Nowadays my turtle friends are a lot tamer. Meet Samson, belongs to a neighbor that had him out for a walk. He really likes strawberries and tomatoes.
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Last edited:
- Jul 29, 2014
- 50,025
Turtles are happiest when they are muddy.
And tastier if in a hot broth with veggies..
Oh wait.. nvm. Been watching too many andrew zimmern shows.
https://mobile.twitter.com/andrewzimmern/status/719281270744813569/photo/1
My box turtles always loved tomatoes and strawberries. Since I grew both, the turts were cheap to feed. 
Blacksmith101
Grumpy Old Man
- Jun 22, 2012
- 22,280
RepublicOfFranklin
Ultimate Member
Wildlife guy on Joe Rogan’s podcast was talking about the bison and elk there a while back. With no real hunters there they’ve lost any fear of people, they’re more than willing to throw down if you mess with them. Had a story about an elk holding off a crowd at one of the restrooms, poor guy didn’t understand why so many people were gathered near there and got salty.
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JPG
Ultimate Member
I was walking my dog the other morning and he spotted a turtle laying eggs. She must have been successful the next day the hole was covered. From what I've read in 70 days or so they should hatch.
TexDefender
Ultimate Member
- Feb 28, 2017
- 1,572
In a way it is kind of sad, people are so urbanized they have no idea how beautiful, powerful and deadly nature can be at times. In a indirect manner, lack of outdoor knowledge I thinks leads to Anti-Gun attitudes. I wonder how many people actually know where their hamburger come from and I don't mean the local grocery store.
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