© Mike KeelingShould people be allowed to hunt and kill snapping turtles in Ontario? The question is currently under review by the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry.[teaserbreak]
Born Free USA is one of many concerned organizations who have joined scientists in urging for a ban on hunting snapping turtles in Ontario.
Of the eight species of turtle native to Ontario, two are officially categorized as “special concern,” three are “threatened,” and two are “endangered”—meaning that they are facing immediate extinction or extirpation.
The largest native turtle, the snapping turtle, is listed as “special concern” under the Endangered Species Act. This means that the species “may become threatened or endangered due to a combination of biological characteristics and identified threats.”
Because of its huge size (up to more than a dozen pounds), prehistoric appearance, and an unfair reputation for aggression, snapping turtles are often feared. While I think they are magnificent, many condemn them for ‘ugliness.’ They are hunted, with a bag limit of two per day: the only “game species” of turtle in the province.
A tiny percentage of the snapping turtle population can live up to 70 years, but females don’t even breed until the carapace (upper shell) reaches about eight inches in length (usually in approximately 17-19 years). Scientists say that removing even a small number of adults can threaten a region’s overall population. It is the survivors who have reached sexual maturity who are hunted for their meat.
While they lay a large clutch of eggs—about 20-40 or more—the eggs are vulnerable to predation (with skunks and raccoons being adept at finding them), as are the tiny hatchlings, around an inch or so in length. There can be up to about a 90% failure in survival of eggs or hatchlings.
Snapping turtles eat mostly plants and carrion, although they will catch live prey. But, they are harmless to people. Only if harassed on land will a snapping turtle attempt to use his or her powerful bite in self-defense. Contrary to lore, they don’t bite swimmers’ toes; and, if you step on or near one in the water, the turtle will swim away.
Mature females lay their eggs in burrows they dig with their back feet. Often, they cross a road or railway track to reach a suitable, well-drained, sun-warmed embankment. They can travel more than a mile from water to find a suitable nest site.
Even climate change may negatively affect their survival, as eggs incubated at 73-75 degrees Fahrenheit produce only males. I’ve rescued whole broods, still sticky from the egg’s yolk, so burdened by grit and sand from a foot path as to be unable to reach water. I’ve often rescued adults trying to cross roads or from other hazardous situations.
But, while I might save the odd individual, the fate of snapping turtles in my region depends on the decision that the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry is in the process of making.
Keep wildlife in the wild,
Barry