Prehistoric Turtle

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I live in the countryside and it is a world of wonder. Sometimes I come across all manner of strange and interesting creatures. Many years ago I came across a prehistoric turtle. I was just walking to the mailbox and there it was on my driveway. It was all covered with mud. It was large about 2 feet across and must have weighed between 50 and 100 pounds. It had large ridges along its back, spikes on its tail and horns on its head. It looked a little similar to a Ankylosaurus.

Ankylosaurus

So I stood in awe for awhile. Then I rushed home to get my camera and take a few pictures of it. When I got back it was gone. Turtles are slow moving creatures and it was a mystery how quickly this creature moved. I figured without a photo, no one would believe me. And generally whenever I bring up the topic of a prehistoric creature living on our property, no one really does.

Now we have snapping turtles and this was not like any snapping turtle that I have ever seen. The closest creature that was similar is called an Alligator Snapping Turtle.

Alligator Snapping Turtle Facts

Now I figured that if I wait long enough I might come across my prehistoric turtle again.

Well yesterday, I was in the same area and saw a rock then I saw it move slightly. I came across another turtle, not the prehistoric turtle, but it answered the question of how the turtle moved so fast. It has the ability to become invisible. Well that is not quite accurate. It has the ability to camouflage itself so that it appears to be invisible. I came a little closer and inspected it. I went up to get my camera and then I came down and it was gone. This is what I saw.



Can you see it. It is about half the size of the prehistoric turtle that I saw. It is about a foot across and perhaps in the 25-50 pound range. It is a normal snapping turtle. Like I said it became invisible.

I went up and got a shovel and gently lifted it up from the creek. It has a sleek tail, no spikes, definitely a snapping turtle. So now you can see it.

Snappers can move faster than people think.I usually get them off the road if I see them since some people hate them.You have to be careful doing this, sometimes you can get them to latch on to a big stick and drag them off, otherwise grab by the tail and move.Their necks come out further than you think so this way you don’t get snapped.It doesn’t hurt the turtle, and is better than them getting ran over.
I always heard if they bite they don’t turn loose till it thunders.I don’t really want to find out.

Snapping turtles have a very powerful bit. I once tried to move one with a large stick. It bit the stick in two. So I generally keep my distance.

Came across a snapper on the lawn at a local park a few days ago. I suspect it had gone in search of a place to lay eggs, but that spot wasn't a very good choice. It was gone the next day -- I hope it found its way back to the river. It's wasn't a monster, but was pretty good sized.

We have snappers, sliders, box, softshell, alligator turtles. We also have gopher tortoises. Turtles can move rapidly, their necks stretch way out; almost looks like a snake. The softshells get huge. Just about every year one tries to nest around our pond. I know at least sometimes they are successful because tiny little softshells gather in the pond. One year they ate all my water lilies even though I had the plants fenced off. The little buggers went right through the chicken wire.

I had a red eared turtle as a pet when I was a kid. We released it when it got bigger cuz it got too big for it's habitat. There's actually a law in Louisiana that makes selling turtles as pets illegal. It's cuz turtles can carry salmonella. Some pet stores get around the law by having a sign telling you if you buy the turtle habitat & food the turtle is free. I'm sure the prices of the habitat & food are jacked up but you can get the turtle that way. I've seen PetCo &/or PetSmart selling tortoises in Louisiana. I'm not sure why they can sell em but perhaps tortoises aren't officially turtles or something IDK I kinda wanted another turtle but my parents wouldn't let cuz it would eventually get too big for the habitat. I could of got one from the wild if I was allowed one. There's lots of swamps in Louisiana which is a good breeding place for turtles. We'd find them on logs when going fishing or on the road sometimes. We'd get em off the road if they were still alive & traffic permitted. If I was gonna get another turtle I would prefer a small snapper. I kinda like the dangerous aspect but I'm not sure how I'd handle it.

I had a small snapper move into my lily pond where it happily ate all the koi and water plants.It stayed a few years and moved on all on its own.Later I built a raised pool using a stock tank and rocked it up the sides so I could have fish again.This time the bullfrogs ate them all, but the lilies are doing great.So I just settled for frogs.
You can make outdoor habitats for a turtle or tortoise if you have a backyard.
https://www.thesprucepets.com/building- ... es-1238472

Someone just caught a prehistoric fish off the coast in Norway. It just looked weird, a bit dinosaur-like.

The fish is apparently a ratfish, a relative of the shark that reportedly dates back 300 million years. They live in deep water and apparently very rarely caught. A fisherman was shocked when he reeled in a bizarre, alien-looking creature from the water. The strange animal had large bulbous eyes that made it look like something truly out of this world.

Lundahl, a fishing guide for Nordic Sea Angling, was reportedly fishing for blue halibut off the coast of the island of Andoya in Norway when he made the catch. He was apparently fishing in 2,600 feet of water at the time.

Source with photo: Fisherman catches strange, 'dinosaur-like' creature

So maybe there is still some hope that I will be able to see my prehistoric turtle before I die.

But you haven't even touched upon the central question.

That being: which is better eating? Snapping turtle? Or venison?

Country singer Johnny Paycheck spent two years in prison after getting into a gun fight in a bar while debating that subject with another bar patron in 1982. So it MUST be an important question!

Or maybe you should put yourself in a prehistorical turtles shoes. Which would taste better - a crunchy human or a frog?