Snapping Turtles in MayJune 23, 2019




Over the years here, in State College, Pennsylvania, I've photographed mom snapping turtles wandering about and digging nests, but this year is the first time I witnessed the social gathering that precedes the walk-about.

In late May, snapping turtles converged about the large pond in the Toftrees game land.

 
Snapping turtle meet and greet
 
  In addition to the meet and greet, some of the snappers were plain silly (although finding a dry place in the pond is always recommended).
 
Stacked snapping turtles
 
  After an intervening day of rain, the female snappers began their walk-about and nest digging.
 
Mom snapping turtle
 
  Here's what I call an interesting snapper face.
 
Mom snapping turtle portrait
 
  One of the surprises was encountering a very young female snapper, whose carapace (or shell) was only about 6 inches long. Apparently, it takes a female snapper 10 years to reach that size and become sexually mature.
 
Young mom snapping turtle portrait
 
  It was a pleasure seeing old and new generations of snapping turtles on the move.

Photography note: The photos were taken with a Pentax K3-II and the SMC-A* 200mm macro lens in late May 2019.  




Mom snapping turtles from 2011   ||   snapping turtle portrait

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