by Sophia Delaat, Guest Blogger
This beauty we found in our horse
corral. It must be a she, not only for her beautiful smile, but
because females are known more than males to travel overland in the
spring to lay their eggs. Males leave their pond when they are
forced to relocate because the pond has dried up. Most of us are
familiar with the snapping turtle, because we see them dead in the
middle of the road. People have little sympathy for these creatures, not only because some consider them ugly, but because they have been
known to bite and tear a cow’s udder while she is refreshing
herself in the pond.
Snapping turtles eat insects, crayfish,
snails, earthworms, snakes, small mammals, birds (how they catch them
I do not know) and aquatic plants and carrion. You can hunt them,
but will need a permit from Fish and Game. I am surprised to learn
that snapping turtle make a great soup or stew, and they offer a
variety of meat tastes…some say seven different tastes.
When I posted these pictures on
Facebook, I received many responses ranging from how prehistoric they look to
“Don’t pick a snapping turtle up by its tail.” It is true that
you must be careful. Missouri Fish and Game suggest a professional
should remove a snapping turtle from your property, because you can’t
be too safe as these turtles have strong necks and a nasty bite.
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