Snapping Turtle Habitat Information
Snapping turtles are reptiles that are native to North America. Though they have a reputation for aggression, this only holds true when they are on land. When they are encountered in the water, they are shy and reclusive. The snapping turtle's habitat shapes its life and its habits.
Other People Are Reading
-
Geography
-
The species can range from southern Canada to the Gulf of Mexico, and from the Atlantic Ocean to the Rocky Mountains in the west. It is a hardy animal that can live in varied environments, leading to its wide distribution.
Types
-
There are four subspecies of snapping turtle, each with its own range. The Mexican snapping turtle is found in northern and central Mexico, while the Ecuadorian snapping turtle is found in eastern Nicaragua, northern Honduras, from Costa Rica to Panama and also from Pacific Columbia down to the Gulf of Guayaquil. The Florida snapping turtle appears only in Florida and southern Georgia, and the northern snapping turtle has the broadest range, being found throughout the United States and also in southern and eastern Canada.
-
Features
-
Snapping turtles are highly aquatic and live in slow-moving bodies of fresh water. They prefer areas that have a great deal of cover, including submerged logs, stumps and aquatic vegetation. For juveniles and hatchlings, the cover gives protection from predators, while adult turtles use it to camouflage themselves from their prey.
Nesting
-
Female snapping turtles travel away from running water to build their nests and lay their eggs. They look for loosely packed soil that is moist, but not soggy. The female will dig a hole with her hind legs and deposit around 25 eggs in the hole before covering it up again and departing. Once they hatch the baby turtles instinctively make the journey from the nest to running water.
Food
-
Snapping turtles need to live in areas where food is abundant, but they are not picky about what kind of food they eat. Their diet consists of plants, insects, crustaceans, fish and even small birds and other small animals. According to the National Wetlands Research Center they tend to be carnivorous in the spring, when there is little vegetation.
-
References
- Photo Credit common snapping turtle (chelydra serpentina) image by Bruce MacQueen from Fotolia.com
