Snapping Turtle

Chelydra serpentina

Species Status: Special Concern in Canada; Vulnerable in Nova Scotia

Action Required: Nest protection

Snapping Turtle (Chelydra serpentina)

With adults weighing up to 16 kg, the snapping turtle is the largest freshwater turtle in Canada. Unfortunately, these big reptiles face big problems — from hunters and poachers to polluted environments and shrinking habitats.

If its size doesn’t give it away, the snapping turtle’s long, serrated, crocodilian tail surely will. Because they can’t pull their heads or limbs into their shells, the snapping turtle can become defensive on land, using its sharp beak and strong jaws to injure attackers.

These omnivores feed on various aquatic plants and invertebrates, as well as fish, frogs, snakes, small turtles, aquatic birds and dead animals (so long as they are relatively fresh). Snapping turtles spend much of their lives in the water, although they are not particularly good swimmers. If you spot one on land in spring or early summer, chances are it’s a female searching for a site to lay her eggs.

Habitat

Snapping turtles usually live in slow-moving water with a soft mud or sand bottom and lots of vegetation. They prefer shallow water so they can hide under the mud and leaves, with only their noses exposed to the surface to breathe. Snapping turtles often take advantage of artificial structures for nest sites, including gravel shoulders along roads, dams and gravel pits.

Range

Snapping turtle populations are very vulnerable to threats such as hunting, poaching and being hit by vehicles. Since they can take nearly 20 years to reach maturity, removing even a few adult snapping turtles can pose a serious threat to the population.

Another threat is loss of habitat due to agriculture, housing and road development. Nests are also vulnerable to human-subsidized predators, such as raccoons, whose numbers are artificially inflated by access to human garbage, crops and other food sources.

Finally, snapping turtles can accumulate many toxins from the surrounding environment over the course of their 70-year lifespan, affecting their health and ability to reproduce.

Threats

Habitat loss and fragmentation are the main reasons driving species decline, as shortgrass prairie habitats are converted to crop production. Efforts by farmers to reduce the numbers of ground squirrels, prairie dogs and insects means there are fewer burrows available for nesting and less prey to feed on. Moreover, the use of pesticides to eliminate insects, ground squirrels and foxes can poison owls when they eat the carcasses. Of particular concern is the use of Carbofuran, a potent insecticide used to control grasshoppers, one of the owls’ primary food sources. Badgers, foxes, skunks, weasels and snakes can also greatly reduce nesting success by preying on eggs and young, while coyotes and red-tailed hawks prey on adults.

Recovery

Recommended Recovery Actions

The proposed national Management Plan for snapping turtles calls for a number of conservation measures, including discouraging the construction of new roads in snapping turtle habitat; conserving, managing and restoring habitat; and documenting the illegal harvest of snapping turtles. Key research questions include understanding the effect of human-subsidized predation on snapping turtle populations and developing techniques to reduce its impact.

What we are doing

Snapping turtle is on Wildlife Preservation Canada’s priority list for potential future action. Find out how we are currently saving other Canadian reptiles and amphibians, and how you can make a difference.