Good Turtle Karma

I stopped and helped a turtle out today. It was wandering in the street in a new neighborhood where each side of the street had barrier fence up, so it was very lost in trying to get to an opening where it could be off of the asphalt! It hissed at me, but I pointed out to it that there were several others up & down the street that weren't so lucky...

What about you guys? Stop? Keep going? Take them home & make them pets? I always stop- to the point that the guys I normally ride with know to watch for me to slow down & U turn...

Here we have problems with turtles crossing a busy highway to lay eggs... the naturalists say to pick them up and deposit them on the other side of the road (snow fence) IN THE DIRECTION they were originally traveling. This could mean crossing 4 lanes of traffic where the speed limit is 55 but the traffic moves closer to 70mph. Thus, I've never attempted to expedite a turtle crossing the road; usually they are already pancakes when I see them. If I saw one on a different road, I would not hesitate, but I have to draw the line on the highway.

I've moved more than a few (but thankfully not on a 4 lane road). I mostly help box turtled - not a fan of snapping turtles.

CA

I'm with CA, boxes yes, snappers...:eek:

you know you are faster than snapping turtles.

I have not seen a turtle crossing the road in a long time. I would have to stop the urge to bring it home. I love turtles.:D

I move the snappers too....even the big ones. You just have to grab their tail faster than they can spin around. ;)

Can they stretch their necks far enough to reach their rear?

I don't stop, but my riding partner always does...

Every time I move one to the side of the road I imagine it's thinking

'Gee, thanks lady, but I was trying to get to the other side. Now I've gotta start all over!' :rolleyes:

But I move them anyways, always to where they were aimed. :)

I saw one in the road when I was driving, pulled over, and made dbf head back to move it. It was a snapper, and actually leaped up at him, was hissing and trying to attack. I had no idea they were so fierce. Now I'm afarid of them.

I've moved various turtles, but not snappers. I think if I saw one of them, they'd be on their own. Oh, I've learned that turtle pee is not something you want to get on you.

I am a long time turtle helper. My husband is a vet, and we do wildlife rehab, so even if they are hit but still alive (cracked shell) I pick them up and we give it a try. There are more than a few turtles in the wild now that have patched shells!!

The key to snappers is to get them to grab a stick or snow brush with their mouth, then pick them up by the tail and the stick to move them. I have even used a sneaker from my gym bag to have them snap at, then just drag them if they are too big.

Make sure you wash your hands or do the sanitizer thing after handling reptiles.

Laura

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Originally Posted by zencentury

Can they stretch their necks far enough to reach their rear?

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Almost, but they can't quite reach their own tails, so if you are quick and grab the base of their tails before they can turn towards you, it's safe. Then just drag them off the road if they are heavy. I'm a long time snapper catcher. I've even leaped into a pond and grabbed them by their tails! Also have caught them by hand while swimming. :p

I will always stop to help any animal. I'll try to move it to safety. If it's something I'm scared of being bitten by, I'll use some object to coax it. Once when I was a kid, my mom refused to let me rescue a turtle on the side of the road. When I got back from school, I found it completely smushed. I was traumatized by that!

When I almost got to Big Meadow on Skyline Drive (Blue Ridge Parkway in Virginia--all day climbing), I stopped and helped a box turtle across. I was only going about 4 mph at that point, so it was easy to convince myself to take a little helpful break.

My mom tried to move a big snapper with a snowshovel once and it whipped around and snapped the snowshovel and cracked it (plastic, not metal). Gotta be careful with those guys.

OH, I would save it and put it in a safe spot.

A few years back I was driving to school one day and I saw a turtle on a busy road. I didn't know where to drop him off so I took him to my classes with me (in a box).

Once I was done, I went out to try to figure out where to take him. I went to the aquarium, but they said he wasn't a sea water turtle. So I took him to the botanical gardens. They said there are tons of turtles out there and he would have friends. :)

I've moved snappers. Hadn't had the opportunity to move a box (although I have spotted them in my yard).
DH one time spotted a big snake in the road. He turned around to go move it off the road, and while we were riding back to it, a big SUV passed us. And in moving out wider to avoid us (the cyclists), the SUV hit the snake! :eek: I'll never forget seeing the snake's body bounce up in the air like that. DH was a basket case! He was sooooo upset! I don't think he forgives himself to this day. (Personally, I think the snake was dead before we saw it, but he swears it wasn't.)

^ I always shoo snakes off of the trail if I'm out running & they aren't already retreating to the bushes. If it's Spring or Fall, sometimes they get chilly & don't want to go. In that state, they're likely to get stepped on or run over by a MTB!
Either that or someone will stop & kill them on purpose :mad:

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Originally Posted by BleeckerSt_Girl

I've even leaped into a pond and grabbed them by their tails! Also have caught them by hand while swimming. :p

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Next thing we know you're gonna be catfish noodling ;)

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Originally Posted by zencentury

Next thing we know you're gonna be catfish noodling ;)

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Here's a +/- 18 year old photo of me with two big LIVE snappers that I caught by jumping into our pond and grabbing them both at once by the tails. My daughters were very impressed. It's hard to see, but the one on the right is still trying to bite me and has his jaws open. It was really hard to hold them both up for the picture, they were plenty heavy.
I drove them across the river, many miles away and put them in a nice swamp. (and away from my ducks!)
http://harmonias.com/Lisa&snappers.jpg

It's so nice to see that you're turtle lovers for the most part. Though I love all things fury, turtles have always been one of my favorite animals and I've had a Chinese box turtle for the past 16 years (she's supposed to live to be 80-100!).

My boyfriend and I have an unspoken system where, if we see a turtle in the road, one of us slows down and the other hops out to help it across. Luckily, it's been mainly painted and wood turtles-- no snappers yet!

Once i came across a 6" painted turtle in the road. There was no body of water around, and the location was not 'turtle friendly'. I just put it right in my saddlebag and buckled it up. When I passed a pond a few miles later, I saw other painted turtles sunning themselves so I let the little feller loose into the water and he swam away. :p

I've never seen a turtle in the road around here, mostly I see suicidal squirrels and bunnies on my commute...and the occasional GINORMOUS crow munching on the aforementioned suicidal squirrels and bunnies.

A round of applause for the reptile friendly! :D And good picture Bleecher St.

I'm also a long time catcher of turtles and snakes. I'll even help out the venomous snakes.

The last snapper I rescued had been straddled by a car. The turtle was so tall that the undercarriage of the car scraped some of the carapace scales off. Needless to say, it was one po'd turtle.

I threw him in the back of my Honda Element and went on about my business. When he started to come over the back seats at me, I scrounged a box from a pal. I took him back to my office for some topical treatment (I'm a vet) before releasing him.

Oh, yeah, I weighed him: 24 lbs.

People, if you've never handled snapping turtles, be careful! You're not going to be bitten on your hand if you're quick in grabbing the tail, but they can strike as quickly as a snake (and are twice as ill-tempered) so hold them as far away from your body as possible. It is somewhat difficult to hold a >20lbs turtle at armslength for more than a short time.

They are quite capable of taking off fingers or parts of your hand. :eek:

The tail technique also works well for oppossums. Sometimes you have to shake them a little bit to keep them from climbing back up their own tail to bite you. And they stink waaay worse than turtles.

I've only come across 1 turtle on a road ride. It was a snapper and not too pleased with my help, but with a little patience, I was able to move the little fellow.

On the trail, I've moved several.

How far around can a snapper reach to bite you?

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Originally Posted by SouthernBelle

How far around can a snapper reach to bite you?

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To add to that question...how do you know if it's a snapper??

See page 1.

Snappers have parrot- like beaks.
And bad tempers.

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Originally Posted by SlowButSteady

A round of applause for the reptile friendly! :D And good picture Bleecher St.

I'm also a long time catcher of turtles and snakes. I'll even help out the venomous snakes.

The last snapper I rescued had been straddled by a car. The turtle was so tall that the undercarriage of the car scraped some of the carapace scales off. Needless to say, it was one po'd turtle.

I threw him in the back of my Honda Element and went on about my business. When he started to come over the back seats at me, I scrounged a box from a pal. I took him back to my office for some topical treatment (I'm a vet) before releasing him.

Oh, yeah, I weighed him: 24 lbs.

People, if you've never handled snapping turtles, be careful! You're not going to be bitten on your hand if you're quick in grabbing the tail, but they can strike as quickly as a snake (and are twice as ill-tempered) so hold them as far away from your body as possible. It is somewhat difficult to hold a >20lbs turtle at armslength for more than a short time.

They are quite capable of taking off fingers or parts of your hand. :eek:

The tail technique also works well for oppossums. Sometimes you have to shake them a little bit to keep them from climbing back up their own tail to bite you. And they stink waaay worse than turtles.

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My grampa (who died many years ago) had part of one of his fingers bitten off my a snapping turtle! At least, that was the story he told all of us grandkids when we'd ask where the rest of his finger was :)

snapping turtles are rather prehistoric looking:

http://www.cortland.edu/herp/keys/im...s/cserpelg.jpg

http://pelotes.jea.com/AnimalFact/Reptile/snapturt.jpg

but the babies are pretty cute:
http://www.boingboing.net/BabySnappers.jpg

Snappers on the road will try to spin around to face you when you threaten them. They can turn pretty fast, but not that fast. They do have long necks, can reach out and bite very quickly, and can reach your hand if it's maybe halfway between their front and their tail, but they cannot reach all the way around to bite your hand if you're holding them by the tail. It's not really that hard to be quick about getting behind them and grabbing the base of their tail. just keep your hand well away from the front half of them. :eek: Then you can drag them off the road if they are really heavy. Smaller ones can be carried by the base of their tails.

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Originally Posted by BleeckerSt_Girl

snapping turtles are rather prehistoric looking:

http://www.cortland.edu/herp/keys/im...s/cserpelg.jpg

http://pelotes.jea.com/AnimalFact/Reptile/snapturt.jpg

but the babies are pretty cute:
http://www.boingboing.net/BabySnappers.jpg

Snappers on the road will try to spin around to face you when you threaten them. They can turn pretty fast, but not that fast. They do have long necks, can reach out and bite very quickly, and can reach your hand if it's maybe halfway between their front and their tail, but they cannot reach all the way around to bite your hand if you're holding them by the tail. It's not really that hard to be quick about getting behind them and grabbing the base of their tail. just keep your hand well away from the front half of them. :eek: Then you can drag them off the road if they are really heavy. Smaller ones can be carried by the base of their tails.

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Ooh, thanks for the info and pics, I'll have to check out the turtles to see what kind they are at the State park next time I go kayaking!

Very prehistoric looking , indeed.
The word I thought of was primordial.

I came across this girl while she was burying her eggs.
http://i206.photobucket.com/albums/b...snapper4-1.jpg

Notice I'm standing behind her

This one was taken with a long lens
http://i206.photobucket.com/albums/b...per5copy-1.jpg

Nice pics!

I got to go on my dream vacation last year to the Galapagos, where I met these guys:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v7...32/turtles.jpg

As well as Lonesome George (the last of his species, who refuses to mate with anyone):

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v7...g32/george.jpg

everyone, those are great pictures! they are so cute! Move them off of the side of the road!

I saw another turtle today- this one had actually "made it" across a neighborhood road and was scaling the curb, so I didn't disturb it!