How to move a Snapping Turtle to Safety! WITHOUT losing a finger!
HTML-код
- Опубликовано: 24 июл 2024
- Never move a snapping turtle by grabbing its tail. The tail vertebrae are easily broken. Learn here how to move a snapping turtle safely: safe for the snapping turtle and safe for you. Do snapping turtles bite? Yes, snapping turtles (Chelydra serpentina) can and do bite, often repeatedly. A snapping turtle's powerful beak and jaws can inflict a painful pain and cause a serious wound. A snapping turtle on land will aggressively protect itself by biting. Other turtles, like a box turtle have larger plastrons under their main shell the carapace. With a larger as well as hinged plastron the box turtle can draw it legs tail and head inside he head for protection. With a small plastron, the snapping turtle can not do this. Its only resort is to continually face its threat and posture with an open mouth and bite when it feels threatened. Never approach a snapping turtle from the front. Always get behind the snapping turtle if it is in a place that threatens the safety of others or the safety of the turtle itself. This snapping turtle was moved because it found its way into a chain link fenced area and ended up inside the porch area of a homeowner and was actually blocking the entrance door. The turtle was relocated back to the pond it likely began its journey to start over and find a safer place. Because the turtle was so far from the pond it was likely to be a female. Female snapping turtles have shorter tails, shorter claws, a flat plastron, and a cloaca located closer to main body. A male snapping turtle has a longer tail, longer claws, an idented or curved plastron and its cloaca is farther down the tail. To safely pick up a anapping turtle, get behind it and grasp the rear to the carpace with both hands. Remember, snapping turtles have long necks and can strike like a snake. Do not pick up the turtle by the sides because it can reach around and bite you. Do not pick up the snapping turtle by the tail. My nature channel is made for anyone interested in learning more about biology, nature and environmental science. I cover all nature topics, from fungi to plants and animals in depth and is the result of my in depth knowledge and research.
Great informational video, Frank. Covered all the points. The only one I would add is to keep low to the ground at first. I've seen inexperienced people pick up snappers and rise up right away only to get startled when they snap. This can possibly end in them dropping the turtle. Looked like some fantastic habitat with that pond. Such cool animals.
Good point. I then also realized I did not explain why NOT to try to pick up by tail. I should have hit that hard.
@@natureatyourdoor I agree but would never, naturally do that. (Pick up via tail). However, probably I should (if I'm going to do it) pick it up via the farthest part of the shell (according to the head)?
Especially if I am unaware of the tye of turtle? Thanks, again.
(P.S. - I surely dropped the turtle when it straight struck me). We were in the grass, though.
Boi- I quickly let'em GO! 😱🦈😆
I loved 'em, but he did not love me back.
That's the way it goes, smtmes...
Anyway he moved faster than I knew a turtle could move.
Very fast, very cool, "Quarterback
(LoL).....😶
once you get used to them they are basically dangerous dinner plates
@@phoneusandfroboof829 🤣
@@theyregr-r-reat8035 I just read that one SHOULD NEVER PICK IT UP BY ITS TAIL BECAUSE THE TAILS VERTABRAE ARE VERY SUSCEPTIBLE TO FRACTURE. PLEASE DON'T ANYONE PICK IT UP BY ITS TAIL!!!
I loved his enthusiasm. Seems like a kind old man. You got a new subscriber.
Well, Welcome to my channel! Thanks for kind words!
I’m not a fan, LOL. Growing up, it seemed our pond’s snapper would lie in wait to chase me.
Several years ago, there was a large snapper in the road. People were going around him, but the closer it got to rush hour, the closer he came to getting hit or run over. I had no idea how to get him out of the road. I’m disabled, so I used my cane to try move him. He just would not help me help him. LOL. Lucky for the turtle, and me, (the natives I was holding up were getting restless) a gentleman stopped and moved him to the other side of the road, which was the direction it was traveling. I’ve had a great time binging on your videos tonight Mr Taylor, I always learn something new, and you always bring me back to my younger days!
Ha! Lol! Thanks for sharing YOUR story! Glad you enjoy my channel!
That was awsome. You gotta love turtles 🐢 ❤️
This was so informative!! loved it Frank! thank you
You are welcome!
Dear Frank, thank you for the closeup look at that snapping turtle! FUN FUN video! GREAT JOB! Take care now....GOD bless.. ..Be safe🙂
Ha! It was too much fun! Lol!
i have saved about 20 snappers out of the road in my life... always rewarding thing to do....some up to 25 lbs...
If not exciting! Like holding a dinosaur! Thanks for your good turtle deeds!
Thanks for such a very informative video - I loved it!
You are welcome. Glad you enjoyed it!
I just moved one off the road the other day. Nice video!
Cool!
Great presentation, thanks for sharing!
Glad you enjoyed it!
This was great. Loved the video.
Ha! Thank you Tamglelooh.
Great video! Thank you!
You are welcome!
Thanks for the useful information!
You are welcome! I appreciate iate you supporting my channel and encouraging me to keep it going!
Fabulous! Thank you.
You ar welcome Jean! This was a fun video to shoot. I love these turtles.
Great information. I've saved a few from the road but was never sure of the best way to hold them.
Thanks Cal! Yup...this is best way! :-)
im not really a fan of the shell method when they are bigger i will say this. I just lift up the back end with the tail a little and slide my hand under the turtle and grab the back of plastron
Wonderful video. And what an amazing turtle!
It really is!
I saw a very large turtle once in some built up water on land and I went chasing it with bare feet I now understand I could had lost my toes I was so overcome with excitement even though I was told it could have been a snapper I wanted to capture it never doing that ever again! Thank you for your videos ❤😊
You are welcome! And thanks for enriching the channel with your experiences too! 👍
Excellent! I enjoyed this. I been seeing quite a few this season. Unfortunately,hit on the roadway by the creek area.
thanks! :-)
Great video! I’ve done this countless times. Dangerous buggers!
Thank you Stacy. And thanks for all your efforts to help these turtles.
@@natureatyourdoor I was walking the dogs at the local park and some animal, maybe a fox or a possum, had systematically followed the path and dug up all the turtle egg nests. I kept finding holes and dried up shells. So sad. But everyone needs to eat. If they didn’t, we’d end up with too many turtles. I love the natural world. It’s clockwork times ten! I’m so glad to see you make this film and it came out just the week we had to stop 3 separate times in the car, and twice in the dog path for nesting females. ❤️ Now more people know. (The week before was snake week.)
@@WisdombyExperience lol on snake week!
You may want to consider changing the description to say never move ANY turtle by grabbing its tail
Hi Im a new Subscriber. Love your channel. I was wondering if you could do a video on northern snakeheads. I havent found any full information on the species. Thanks
Hi Flat out bank Angling.... I would love to do that ...thanks for suggestion, locally and thankfully we dont have them here yet. but sounds like a great road trip for NAYD to do! Welcome to my channel!
We found one today near a little river and we're afraid to carry her back to the river or pond and had no clue.We had to wait for someone else to do it by pushing her but just learn with your video how to safely grab her.Thanks
Next time! 💪💪💪
we have our farm pond and get our share of snappers! this month, all the turtles are moving from nest to water hole.. even the local news reminds people to keep and eye out for them.. but i must say.. i have never seen a snapper like size!!! amazing!! I would never even try to pick one up..omg.. awesome video awesome channel! love this stuff!! ... hedge hogs up here are the wife's favorite.. any vids of those??? chunky walkers ?
Fascinating share about snappers in Maine! yes..they get big here...this one was actually pretty small compared to others i have seen! longer growing seasons in the south i guess, right?
How do you not flinch when that turtle snaps at your face?? “Be careful pops!!” Awesome video!
Ha! I know right? One viewer comment that I should have said carry low to ground. Most people likely to drop them when they lunge like that!
just treat them as if they are a piece of fine china that can rip flesh. my nickname for them is “danger dinner plates”
This video reminded me of an urban encounter a few years ago with a NOT snapping turtle a few years ago here in Soutwestern Wisconsin. I was working in an office in an industrial park building a short distance from the Mississippi River and from one window we had a good view of a public park; specifically, a fairly secluded spot that was favored by gravid river turtles to come and lay their eggs. I pointed out this performance to one of my office mates and she exclaimed "oh, how cute!" I had never thought of using that particular adjective, but I can empathize with that emotional reaction, and am glad to see it expressed toward a reptile. I later learned it was common for these turtles to migrate from the wildlife area nearby to this bank and back, a rather hazardous journey across at least one road.
I later saw from that same window several glimpses of the secret lives of a small family of seven-banded ground squirrels (I think), a few feet away and higher up on the grassy bank. These little glimpses of wild visitors are one of the most rewarding features of living in a suburb smack in the middle of a riparian habitat. Squirrels, cotton-tail rabbits and bats are seen almost daily, especially in Spring and Summer.
What a great office and so cool you could observe nature happening!
We love your videos!!!! That turtle was soooooo mad at you!! 😅🤣
Lololol. Ya know...yes she was! "Put me down this instant!
As a kid I was a turtle freak. I kept turtles as pets for years. I used to catch baby snappers and kept them in my aquarium. When they got too big I would release them back into the body of water that I caught them in. I did the same with Western Painted turtles. I also had Box turtles as pets that were purchased from pet stores. Thankfully Box turtles are now protected and the only way to purchase them are from breeders. It is illegal to sell turtles as pets here in Canada.
Cool share Brian. My classroom snapper was a big hit when I was teaching!
There for a second, I thought she was going to get ya. They have such a fast backward bend to their neck and mouth.
Ha! That is what my daughter said!
Very useful info. Seems like I wind up moving one every couple years here in Minneapolis. Our many lakes in the city, and waterways, make the pretty common. Never seem to have gloves handy, though. And damn, those necks are long, and shoot out fast!
Ha ...throw a pair of gloves in the trunk along with your snow shovel and emergency blanket, right?
im also in minneapolis and experience moving these scary guys all the time lol
Hi Frank. Awsome video. From your Pennsylvania buddy Jeff. I love turtles. They nest in an old slate bank next to the mountain behind my house. I have seen them digging holes. They live in the trout stream behind my house. . Im grilling on my deck. And im heading north to pennfield tomorrow to go gold digging and a gravel pit. They have a mining permit. So it is legal to run my highbanker. Im starting on 2 ounces of placer gold. That i have found in Alaska and Pennsylvania. God bless my friend. I put my bee box today. 😊😊
Gold mining sounds so fun! Good luck! Can't wait to hear how it goes!
Hi Frank. The gold mining went great. I ran 2. 5 gallon buckets of 1/8" classified .my classifier is made to fit on a 5 gallon plastic bucket. . It takes approximately 5 buckets of dirt to equal 1 classified. The gold here is fine. So this allows me to run my highbanker slow with a little drop.. I have my highbanker set up to run 12 volt/ gas Honda 1" pump. I ran the Honda. It goes to a manifold garden hose. To the highbanker. And a regular hose a nozzle. I classify wet. . I did not pan the concentrates. But found gold before where I was digging. It's a waste pile. A d full of clay and round quartz and black sand. . When I set up my Miller table gold concentrator. Ill take pictures. I forgot to take pictures today. Too busy digging. It's called GOLD fever 🤒 ✨️ 🤣 God bless my friend. And there's gold in Virginia. Pennsylvania buddy who wishes you were his biology teacher Jeff
@@user-wo2iw3kt8o ha! Love it! Love following you adventure!
3:20 she almost got your face.
Ha! Yes!!!! She was close!
I found a big one in the road, got out to try to move it along, and when that neck snapped out, I decided she was on her own! I’m not as brave as you. Great video 👍
Ha! My daughter couldn't believe I didn't drop it when it did that too me! They can really reach the neck out lightning fast...its really a lunge!
Neat video! Very informative! I've picked up snappers that SNAPPED me!
Their necks are really long.
(I picked them up like I would a tortoise)...I GOT SPANKED.
LoL.
No wonder.
Thanks for the explanation!
Ha! Those necks are long! And snap backwards too!
Its amazing the length they will go to lay their eggs.☺️❤️
It really is...that nest we found ...so far from the water!
found this while searching how to handle a snapper in your yard good info
i do know were it came from but its a long walk(for a turtle?) with multiple road crossings so i don't know how it got here
Glad it was helpful!
Hi Frank, thanks for sharing. I'm good if I never come across one. She needs to find a new Manicurist and cop a new attitude! 🙃
Ha! Right! I was actually surprised as well at how long those claws were as well!
Thanks so much - just what I was searching for and so much more excellent info too! You seemed to have a great grip on the turtle in the video. I saw where you were holding but am wondering a bit more. When you grab it from the back end and tighten your fingers behind its legs, are your fingers sort of going into a fleshy pocket back there under the shell i.e. should I expect to feel some flesh? And are you holding quite firmly? I ask this because I just moved one across the street yesterday (prior to seeing your video), holding it not as far back as you did (glad she didn't snap me) but sort of holding it above her back legs. It was very unstable though because I wasn't at its center of gravity, and I didn't have a good grip because I didn't want to hurt it. I ended up dropping her a bit. Fortunately not far off the ground and she was fine as I checked on her later and she was gone. Would love more specifics though on exactly where you are grabbing, what you are feeling when you do have that grip, and how tight a grip you need to support all that top weight simply by the back end. And re a tight grip: better a little butt bruising than being dropped or worst still being run over by a car! Thanks in advance for all - excellent video!
Yes..the grip is on the back of the shell in that pocket. Yes..very not center of gravity which is why I point the turtle almost straight up to get center of gravity over my hands..but then you need to be sure to hold away from your body/face!
@@natureatyourdoor Thanks so much for your reply, Frank! So are you holding it as tightly as you can grip with your fingers while you keep it upright? I don't want to hurt it but again it seems like the tightest grip would be required to keep it steady, upright, not drop it, and at a distance to avoid the snap. Exactly how tightly ARE you holding it? Thanks again - love the video, subscribed, and looking forward to checking out more!
@kari-karislinedancing6146 pretty tight ...but gripping it's shell so it can't feel or be hurt no matter how hard I hold it!
@@natureatyourdoor Thanks, again Frank! Along with your other great tips, I will remember to put the most force on the side of the shell if I I ever again have to move another snapper! Best wishes for your future adventures!
I found a flathead or snow shovel to scoop the little chomper into a 30 gallon trash can for transport down to the creek works pretty good.
Ha! Yes! Sounds like you engineered an excellent system to solve a problem! Kudos! 👏
@@natureatyourdoor
I try to enjoy these beasties at a distance. 😉
@@johnhiggs325 lol!
Great video. Thanks for sharing. They'll catch and eat nearly every decent sized fish in a farm pond. You end up with a pond full of turtles and bluegill. Don't leave a stringer or basket of fish unattended in water where those turtles can get to them. They'll destroy the stringer or basket and eat your fish. However, the turtle is also good eating. I've eaten many turtles (snappers and soft shell) in my lifetime.
theres a lake where i fish and always there were snake heads dead by the road. i let a couple very large snappers go in there. now no dead snake heads, no bass or very few now. i think the snappers go into the fish nest and take out the whole thing. gonna use 2 poles now. 1 with a lure for bAss and another pole with chicken liver to catch catfish. catching some thing better than nothing.
@@farnorthhomested844: We had 8 ponds on the farm where I was raised. They weren't only for cattle water. Every one of them was stocked with fish (channel cat, bass, shellcracker, bluegill). Those ponds were our supply of fish for the table at least once a week. We had fish, frogs and the occasional duck from those ponds. Turtle control was trot line and .22lr and yes we also ate the turtles. That was 50 yr a go. I miss those days.
So true Gerald! They will clean out a pond. Turtle soup was once the staple at famous bookbinders resturant in Philadelphia!
Well...you got rid of the snake heads!
Ah! Loved reading this window back in time to the good old days!
😂 How cool is that?! That your neighbor calls you when there's an animal issue 💚🐢
Many species of turtles are great climbers. You have probably seen videos of an alligator climbing a chain link fence, there are videos out there of turtles climbing chain link, and I think I have seen one climb a wood fence!
Ha! yes.. a lot of my episodes are from friends who call me! I taught at a high school in town for 35 years ...everyone knows me! lol
wow. I didnt know that... oh my gosh...i will have to check that out. Thanks for sharing with me!
Ha! There was an article just last week in our little paper about a woman finding a snapping turtle in the middle of the road. Yep, it must be that time.
Ha, Right? Thanks for share!
Snapping turtles are pretty common. I saw a pair mating a few weeks ago. They will climb out on logs and bask. I’ve seen some pretty large ones especially while on vacation in Virginia.
Yes! The big ones are really fascinating to see!
I just moved one off the road. 😊That’s why I’m watching this video. The thing snapped at me.
Oh yeah...lol
.they snap for sure!
Hi Frank, love watching your shows. recently got to see hundreds of toads in our pond during amplexus. Now got sidetracked watching your show on snapping turtles. We saw one once in our pond while "swimming". Have never seen it again...I researched and learned NO one has ever been bitten by a snapper while swimming..is this true? should we worry and if it did bite us while swimming, how do we get out of it?????? thanks Joanne M
I will have to look that up! My gut feeling is they bite when cornered on land....I ll see what I can find.
Yes...the lit seems to confirm a bite in water is highly unlikely... I think it's because they are in their realm and can rapidly easily quickly escape and they have no reason to bite a human! www.oriannesociety.org/faces-of-the-forest/are-snapping-turtles-dangerous/?v=400b9db48e62#:~:text=So%2C%20long%20story%20short%2C%20Snapping,great%20lengths%20to%20avoid%20people.
thanks Frank, that is what I also found a few years back so feel a bit better knowing it is "lurking" under the water with our grass carp that are like little sharks now they are so big; however, what do you do if one bites you? Can you tickle it to let go? no seriously, do you lose your finger or is there a way to get it to let go ???? Joanne to p@@natureatyourdoor
It can help to throw a rag or towel over its head while you're moving it.
That is a very good suggestion. Concern about people getting scared when they snap and dropping them!
Wow, they can be vicious. I didn't know how to grab it. Is these the same grabbing for all of them? Thanks
Yes. Even for the big ones ..this is how it is done. This one was actually relatively small compared to many of the local snappers.
@@natureatyourdoor wow
@@carmennunnally9847 ha yes!
@@natureatyourdoor how do you have the strength to do the shell life?? i always have to alteast with big ones lift the tail a little and slide my hand under to grab the plastron
Any way to pick em up without getting musked on
I actually have never been masked on. Just lucky I guess!
Literally lose a finger.
Be careful Pop! (From my 3 year old grandaughter!
I always relocate them to my cleaning table and then on to the hot grease,,or crockpot. Tasty critters in my opinion.
😲
Today, I'm heading to an animal rehab facility about an hour and forty-five minutes away. I will be picking up "my" snapping turtle and returning it to a SAFE and isolated place in a nearby marsh just off of a lake/river area nearby - accessible only by small boat. The rehab center is where I took this snapping turtle that had been DELIBERATELY run over with a Chevy Suburban of all vehicles, a vehicle owned by my stupid, crazy (probably senile) neighbor! How do I know it was deliberate? Because I witnessed it, and when I approached him seconds later - he admitted to doing it. I wasn't sure at first what he ran over until I approached the scene closer. He said he did it because it was going to "eat all of the trout in the (nearby) stream." (Dumbass!!). He had just turned the vehicle around to finish the job when I (thankfully) approached - JUST in time! After giving him a total piece of mind, I found a bin, and carefully had my father-in-law place the turtle in it and rushed the hour and forty-five minute drive to the wild animal rehab center (it only took me an hour and fifteen minutes THAT day). The poor thing had cracks on both sides of its shell and had a good gash under one of its arms. After being ran over it had been trying to "flee" the road to the ditch/tall grass, but sadly, it could not move. Later, the Rehab owner likened the turtles injury to us humans having a cracked skull - VERY painful for this poor little guy! On the drive in, I wasn't sure the turtle was going to make it (from injuries, and then stress of being in.a moving vehicle), albeit, there was not a whole lot of blood at the scene. I was really just concerned about its internal injuries, if there were any. The next day I contacted the Center for a preliminary update. They said so far the turtle was still alive and said they were basically cautiously optimistic it would survive. Long story short, it did. Thank goodness. Several years ago I had taken an older fawn that had been hit by a car and left for dead, to this same facility, it also survived. Sadly though, a raccoon that had been hit that I tried to take there died halfway along the journey. I drove back home with it and we buried it out in the woods. THAT was sad. I kick myself for it but I know, really, that it wasn't my fault. Everyone tells me 'you won't be able to save them all' - but I'll still always try anyway! I have learned, many many times when animals are hit and lying on the side of the road, they are STILL alive but don't move because of injury, pain and shock. I'll always tell people...if it's safe to do so (meaning don't get yourself hit by a car while trying), pull over and help if you can. Scoop up the little creature and take it to a facility if you have one nearby. Don't assume they are all dead because a LOT of the time, they aren't. The fawn was a perfect example...I passed it by, it was laying there totally still, definitely looking deceased, and something just nagged at me to turn around and check it - it was most definitely still alive but had a head and tail injury. It was rehabbed and let back into the wild with a few other fawns that had recovered at the same facility. I'm also that person that you'll see who pulls over and (safely) stops traffic to usher baby raccoons off the road that got stranded in the middle of the road with cars whizzing by on each side and no one stopping! THAT happened to me twice. People...please...just stop and help the little critters -- or help the person TRYING to help by stopping/directing traffic -- if you see animals in distress. If YOU don't...likely no one else will. You'll feel amazing afterwards, and the other drivers will give you a thumbs-up and tell you "you definitely did your good deed for the day!" Thanks for reading my long-winded post. I hope you all got something out of it.
Thanks for share! I once stopped to move a rat snake off the road and while I was standing there I guy in a truck purposely swerved into it and killed it while I was standing there! Right in front of me! SMH!
@@natureatyourdoor Oh my gosh! That is absolutely heartbreaking!! Hearing those kinds of stories literally makes my cry! Doesn't that make you SO angry?! The stupidity and ignorance (and spitefulness) that some people display. Nothing upsets me MORE than seeing or hearing about cruelty to animals. They are at our mercy so often and count on us to look after them in one way or another, domestic or wild.Thank GOODNESS for the people out there that ARE willing to help the little critters of the world! We'll keep doing what WE can and hope that people can learn from that and that generations to come can learn the importance of taking care of Earth's animals! (I married into a family where SADLY, one branch of this family tree have been known to be cruel to animals - I hear ONE MORE STORY and I will likely report them, anonymously of course, because they are the type to retaliate, Im sure of it. It is absolutely embarrassing to no end to know I am related to these backwoods hillbilly's by marriage/law!!) Ugh and ick!!
P.S. - if uncertain, should we not just pick up all turtles via their hind-end? Thank you....
The female sound MOST cool!
(So smart)!!! Leaving the pond, food, etc...
Thank you, again.
Neat-O!!!!!
P.S.S. so amusing that you stated, "hope you liked this more than the turtle". LMBO!!!
Just the snapping turtle has long neck and overhanging carapace in the back. Other turtles you can pick up by the sides.
Hahaha. We move them frequently. I have seen these suckers stretch their necks backwards all the way to their tails while trying to get at the person who was picking them up. I moved one in a banana box in my front seat before, while she was trying to climb out of it. I told her if she didn't stop then I would have to leave her where I found her. Surprisingly she stopped. 🤣🤣🤣
Feels like sometimes animals can tell when we're helping them, even ones with attitude 😆
Ha ha! Lol! Thanks for share and making me smile!
I feel that often with black snakes!
What a cutie. I have a year old snapper. His name is barbosa. He's so sweet 😍🎂
Also that is most likely female. male have bigger bulge.
I had one twice as big in my classroom...from someone how raised him from a baby like yours!
@@natureatyourdoor that's cool. Problem is I need to buy a house because he's going to get so big that he needs an outdoor house. Snapping turtles are smaller and don't live as long in the wild compared to being domesticated. I think the longest they live in the wild is 20-30 years? Either from getting ran over or ate etc.
Thanks! Apparentky I just picked one of those up in the road by my house, it was like prying a glued piece of something its paws I guess are super sticky
I get it uo about an inch finally and the bastard swiped at me backwards with its claws and I screamed lol. The guy who’d stooped behind me came over and just grabbed it by the tail and took it across the road to the creek.
I looked it up now to see what it was, never saw anything so crazy prehistoric looking, but it was black and just learned what it was. When I put it down it was staring me down lol, I’m like, an I gonna have to throw down with a turtle right here? Thankfully guy in other car heard me scream and handled it . I guess they’re not as friendly as painted turtles apparently . Thanks for the video
Lol..no not as friendly as painted turtles. Not recommended to move by tail alone...can break tail..very painful and debilitating for the turtle.