Herpetology Is A Snap: A Natural History of Chelydra serpentine

Located in the small, quite town of Hollywood South Carolina is nestled the historic Dixie Plantation. This plantation, which is under the ownership of the College of Charleston Foundation, has become a biological paradise for students and teachers alike, in regards to reptile and amphibian species collection. On a recent species identification expedition, the students came across a glorious find in a turtle trap. When the trap was removed from the dark water a common snapping turtle (Chelydridae Located in the small, quite town of Hollywood South Carolina is nestled the historic Dixie Plantation. This plantation, which is under the ownership of the College of Charleston Foundation, has become a biological paradise for students and teachers alike, in regards to reptile and amphibian species collection. On a recent species identification expedition, the students came across a glorious find in a turtle trap. When the trap was removed from the dark water a common snapping turtle (Chelydridae Chelydra serpentine) was seen thrashing about inside.  Once released from its wire prison the turtle immediately became aggressive towards any approaching student, launching its snapping beak towards anyone who dared to approach from the front. This aggressive habit made me feel sorry for the other turtle which had been trapped with this angry roommate. It was amazing to see this snapping turtle in a defensive posture, and notice the head of this animal could spring forward at a far greater speed than the turtle could turn, to face another would be aslant. The whole process seemed to resemble an old World War II cannon, commonly seen in movies. The canon would released with deadly force, springing several feet backwards from the massive launch of a shell, yet even with all this power it would take several men and a vehicle to slowly change the direction of the machine.

Two features which stuck out to me in regards to this pre-historic looking creature was the size of its feet and the sound it makes. Much like a gentleman in clown shoes, the feet of this animal appear to be too large for its body. These feet also contained large nails which were used as defensive weapons when the turtle was lifted off the ground. These feet and claw combination are no doubt used for walking through copious amounts of mud, which the common snapping turtle commonly experiences while sitting and walking on the bottom of ponds. The second feature was the hissing sound which this turtle made when threatened. This sound, which in my mind, which represents a cross somewhere between a quickly deflating tire and a broken vacuum cleaner, was intimidating in combination with the turtle’s open snapper style mouth.

            This snapping turtle was caught in a small freshwater pond located along a nature trail, which winds its way around the expansive property. This pond is surrounded by trees and brushes on three sides and has a cleared blank along the longest length of the pond. When looking into this lake, it is not uncommon to see eyes staring back at you. These eye belong to the American alligator (Alligatoridae Alligator mississippiensis), which the professor refers to with the phase “that alligator is always here.” The nutrients level of this pond has increased drastically in recent years due to a substantial amount of logging, which has taken place on the plantation. While, at this time of the year the pond appears black, during the late spring to early fall the pond appears green. This is the same color as the green grass which surrounds the banks.

            I am unsure of the sex of this adult common snapping turtle, so I can not give a gender with any certainty. With that being said, I believe the turtle is most likely a female. This belief is due to the larger body size and a smaller size tail. This snapping turtle was measured to have carapace length of 33 centimeters, which was 1 centimeter shy of the 34 centimeter long turtle which was found in this same pond several days prior.  This species of snapping turtle was easily identified due to the fact that the Chelydra serpentine is the only local South Carolina species of snapping turtle.

            The finding and observation of this turtle was the highlight of our collections for the day. When the turtle was returned to the water it left the class with a better understanding of the Chelydra serpentine and also a few jokes in reference to, the internet phenomena, “the turtle man”.) was seen thrashing about inside.  Once released from its wire prison the turtle immediately became aggressive towards any approaching student, launching its snapping beak towards anyone who dared to approach from the front. This aggressive habit made me feel sorry for the other turtle which had been trapped with this angry roommate. It was amazing to see this snapping turtle in a defensive posture, and notice the head of this animal could spring forward at a far greater speed than the turtle could turn, to face another would be aslant. The whole process seemed to resemble an old World War II cannon, commonly seen in movies. The canon would released with deadly force, springing several feet backwards from the massive launch of a shell, yet even with all this power it would take several men and a vehicle to slowly change the direction of the machine.

Two features which stuck out to me in regards to this pre-historic looking creature was the size of its feet and the sound it makes. Much like a gentleman in clown shoes, the feet of this animal appear to be too large for its body. These feet also contained large nails which were used as defensive weapons when the turtle was lifted off the ground. These feet and claw combination are no doubt used for walking through copious amounts of mud, which the common snapping turtle commonly experiences while sitting and walking on the bottom of ponds. The second feature was the hissing sound which this turtle made when threatened. This sound, which in my mind, which represents a cross somewhere between a quickly deflating tire and a broken vacuum cleaner, was intimidating in combination with the turtle’s open snapper style mouth.

            This snapping turtle was caught in a small freshwater pond located along a nature trail, which winds its way around the expansive property. This pond is surrounded by trees and brushes on three sides and has a cleared blank along the longest length of the pond. When looking into this lake, it is not uncommon to see eyes staring back at you. These eye belong to the American alligator (Alligatoridae Alligator mississippiensis), which the professor refers to with the phase “that alligator is always here.” The nutrients level of this pond has increased drastically in recent years due to a substantial amount of logging, which has taken place on the plantation. While, at this time of the year the pond appears black, during the late spring to early fall the pond appears green. This is the same color as the green grass which surrounds the banks.

            I am unsure of the sex of this adult common snapping turtle, so I can not give a gender with any certainty. With that being said, I believe the turtle is most likely a female. This belief is due to the larger body size and a smaller size tail. This snapping turtle was measured to have carapace length of 33 centimeters, which was 1 centimeter shy of the 34 centimeter long turtle which was found in this same pond several days prior.  This species of snapping turtle was easily identified due to the fact that the Chelydra serpentine is the only local South Carolina species of snapping turtle.

            The finding and observation of this turtle was the highlight of our collections for the day. When the turtle was returned to the water it left the class with a better understanding of the Chelydra serpentine and also a few jokes in reference to, the internet phenomena, “the turtle man”.

Peterson Field Guides: Reptiles and Amphibians Eastern/Central North America
Photos provided by Dr. Welch