Introduced Range in California: Red
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Introduced - not native to California
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Large old adult swimming on top of aquatic vegetation, Hays County, Texas |
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Snapping turtles have shown up in various locations in California, including the lake in San Luis Obispo County shown on the left, and the lake in Santa Barbara County shown on the right. It is not known if all of these populations are established and breeding.
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©1998 Allen McConnell
According to news reports, snapping turtles resident in this pond in San Francisco occasionally bite off the legs of birds floating on the water. |
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Habitat, Spring-fed Lake,
Hays County, Texas |
Habitat, river inlet, Travis County, Texas |
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| Description |
| Size |
| 8 - 18.5 inches in shell length (20.3 - 47 cm). (Stebbins 2003) |
| Appearance |
A large freshwater turtle with a massive head with huge hooked jaws, a long tail, a saw-toothed crest, and a shell that looks like it is too small to fit the body.
The legs are large with webbed toes and heavy claws. The tail is longer than half the length of the carapace. The skin is gray, black, yellow, or tan, with tubercles on the neck. White flecks occur on some individuals.
The color of the carapace ranges from black, brown, or olive to tan. Often it is covered with mud or algae, which helps camouflage the turtle. It is heavily serrated on the rear, and scutes may have a pattern of radiating lines. The plastron is tan or yellow.
Males typically grow larger than females. Young have 3 prominent serrated ridges on the carapace. These ridges become less conspicuous as the turtle ages. The tail of a juvenile is longer than the length of the shell.
Average weight is around 45 lbs, but some captives have weighed in at over 75 lbs. |
| Behavior and Natural History |
Aquatic, found in or near water. An excellent swimmer. Considered most active at night in the southern part of its range, it is apparently more active during the day in the northern part of its range, which probably includes the Southern California locations, also.
Sometimes seen basking on or under the surface in shallow water. Often rests buried in the mud with its eyes and nostrils exposed in water shallow enough that it can raise its long neck up to allow the nostrils to break the surface and breathe without moving out of the mud.
Active most of the year, becoming dormant in areas with cold winters, generally in late October. Remains dormant either burrowed into the mud bottom, or under overhanging banks, root snags, stumps, brush, logs, or other debris. Large groups have been found hibernating together, sometimes with other turtle species. Emerges some time between March to May, depending on the climate.
Snapping turtles are
ill-tempered and capable of producing a very serious bite.
Longevity has been estimated at up to 40 years. |
| Diet |
| Omnivorous, eating anything that fits into its jaws, including snails, earthworms, shrimp, crayfish, insects, fish, frogs, salamanders, reptiles, small turtles, snakes, birds, mammals, plants, carrion. Young turtles tend to forage actively, while adults tend to lie in ambush. |
| Reproduction |
| Adults become sexually mature in four to five years. Females crawl onto land, sometimes travelling over great distances, to dig a nest where they lay a clutch of eggs, generally from 20 - 40, (ranging from 6 - 104). Egg laying takes place mostly in June and July (but can occur any time between May and October). The eggs hatch in 9 - 18 weeks. During cold winters, hatchlings will overwinter in the nest. Females may retain viable sperm for several years, so they do not necessarily need to breed with a male each year to produce viable eggs. |
| Range |
According to Robert Stebbins in California Amphibians and Reptiles, 1972, this species, native to eastern North America, was reported as established in Fresno County near Fresno. The 2003 Stebbins Field Guide lists this turtle as present at Andree Clark Bird Refuge in Santa Barbara, and along the lower Colorado River. Other records include the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco and Oso Flaco Lake in San Luis Obispo County.
C. s. serpentina ranges from southeastern Canada to Florida, west to eastern New Mexico, and north, east of the Rocky Mountains, to southcentral Canada. (A second subspecies occurs in Florida).
The species ranges from southern Canada to Ecuador, though not continuously. It has been introduced into a few areas west of the Rockies where it may or may not be established, including Oregon, Washington, Utah, Nevada, Arizona, and California, mostly in populated areas along the coast and the lower Colorado River. |
| Habitat |
| Found in just about every type of freshwater habitat in its natural range, including marshes, ponds, lakes, rivers, and slow streams. Prefers slow-moving shallow waters with a muddy or sandy bottom and abundant aquatic vegetation or submerged roots and trees. Also occurs at the edges of deep lakes and rivers and in brackish coastal waters. |
| Taxonomic Notes |
| Four species are known, with two north of Mexico. |
| Conservation Issues (Conservation Status) |
This voracious predator may pose a threat to the survival of native animals. It has been introduced into various locations probably due to negligent pet owners. It is not known if turtles in these locations are reproducing, but some nesting has been observed.
Snapping turtle meat is considered a delicacy, and is often used in turtle soup. Some populations have been severely decimated from overhunting. |
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Taxonomy |
| Family |
Chelydridae |
Snapping Turtles |
| Genus |
Chelydra |
Snapping Turtles |
| Species |
serpentina |
Common Snapping Turtle |
Subspecies
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serpentina |
Eastern Snapping Turtle |
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Original Description |
Chelydra serpentina - (Linnaeus, 1758) - Syst. Nat., 10th ed., Vol. 1, p. 199
from Original Description Citations for the Reptiles and Amphibians of North America © Ellin Beltz
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Meaning of the Scientific Name |
Chelydra - Greek - chelys- turtle, and hydros - water serpent - refers to the aquatic nature of the genus.
serpentina - Latin - serpentina snake-like — refers to the snake-like neck.
from Scientific and Common Names of the Reptiles and Amphibians of North America - Explained © Ellin Beltz
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Alternate Names |
Common Snapping Turtle
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Related or Similar California Turtles |
None
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More Information and References |
Natureserve Explorer
California Dept. of Fish and Game
Stebbins, Robert C. A Field Guide to Western Reptiles and Amphibians. 3rd Edition. Houghton Mifflin Company, 2003.
Behler, John L., & F. Wayne King. The Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Reptiles and Amphibians. Alfred A. Knopf, 1992.
Carr, Archie. Handbook of Turtles: The Turtles of the United States, Canada, and Baja California. Cornell University Press, 1969.
Ernst, Carl H., Roger W. Barbour, & Jeffrey E. Lovich. Turtles of the United States and Canada. Smithsonian Institution 1994.
Lemm, Jeffrey. Field Guide to Amphibians and Reptiles of the San Diego Region (California Natural History Guides). University of California Press, 2006.
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The following status listings come from the Special Animals List which is published several times each year by the California Department of Fish and Game.
There are no significant conservation concerns for this animal in California.
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Organization
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Status Listing
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| U.S. Endangered Species Act (ESA) |
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| California Endangered Species Act (CESA) |
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| California Department of Fish and Game |
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| Bureau of Land Management |
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| USDA Forest Service |
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| Natureserve Global Conservation Status Ranks |
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World Conservation Union - IUCN Red List
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