How to prevent/deal with a snapping turtle?

[Coops Dad]

Snapping turtles aren't prone to coming out of the water to sunbathe; they generally come out only to bury their eggs in the soil or when they're migrating to another body of water. They tend to stay shallow enough to reach the surface with their snout without needing to swim up; they'll extend their neck and front legs to reach the surface. That can mean water up to about two feet deep- their necks are are long as their shell and, though their legs may look stubby when they're on land, they're actually pretty long. You can sit quietly on the bank and try to spot them as they're coming up for a breath but it's difficult because they present just the tip of the snout above the surface, and it is deceptively small. I prefer to relocate them from our little stock tank to the nearby Brazos River rather than kill them. My tank is shallow and clear enough that I can usually spot them moving in the reeds, wade out and drag it up onto the bank by the tail. That's not for the faint of heart or first timers unless you only need to count to nine.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

That's pretty good, @Coops Dad . I changed my reaction from Like to Informative, but I also thought about Lol. Too bad we can only choose one!

 

[Chuckie chicken]

That's not for the faint of heart or first timers unless you only need to count to nine.

Hence my personal preference to deal with them from a safe distance and limit my encounter to once.

 

[TheAlrightyGina]

My tank is shallow and clear enough that I can usually spot them moving in the reeds, wade out and drag it up onto the bank by the tail. That's not for the faint of heart or first timers unless you only need to count to nine.

I always just grabbed 'em by the shell right behind the head and at the base above the tail. That way they couldn't reach my fingers. But I didn't go into water after them mainly cause of snakes. I lived close to the Mississippi River growing up so I guess that's why I saw them on land as much as I did, but they seemed to get into my best bud's bond and take out her geese and ducks on occasion--I'm talking about alligator snapping turtles, btw...I didn't ever see the common one. I don't remember any specific remedy other than trying to bait them up at night and a well aimed shot which probably isn't the best for most.

 

[neo71665]

I have some treble hooks mounted to a small steel cable. I bait it the setup with small fish out of my pond. I attach to cables to tree limbs.

Never have caught any snappers in a turtle trap. Only the red ear sliders.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

I have some treble hooks mounted to a small steel cable. I bait it the setup with small fish out of my pond. I attach to cables to tree limbs.

Never have caught any snappers in a turtle trap. Only the red ear sliders.

Do the sliders trouble the ducks? I think they are so pretty.

 

[neo71665]

Do the sliders trouble the ducks? I think they are so pretty.

Never had any issues with sliders and waterfowl.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Never had any issues with sliders and waterfowl.

Wonderful. Perhaps sliders are herbivores.

 

[neo71665]

Wonderful. Perhaps sliders are herbivores.

Nope, why I try to keep them thinned out of my pond. I stock it with fish every few years and it aint to feed the wildlife.

 

[B-Goock]

Sliders will go after bait so hook & line you can accidentally catch them going for snappers.