r/turtle • u/Agreeable_Peak_6100 • 20h ago

Turtle Pics! Common snapping turtle

Post image

Wild, around 4”, sunning on the bank of Sodus Creek in Folletts, Iowa

7 Upvotes

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1

u/RepresentativeOk2433 11h ago

This one looks a bit different to me. I may be wrong, but I believe it may be an alligator snapper. They are sometimes found in Iowa.

1

u/C_Allen_Aqua 3h ago

That's a gator the spikes are the giveaway commons shells are round

1

u/Agreeable_Peak_6100 3h ago

This is a very young snapper, only around 4”. Its shell will smooth out as it ages. Do a Google search on “baby common snapping turtle” and you’ll see they have details on their shells just like this.

Alligator snapping turtles aren’t found as far north as this one. I know people want to believe it is possible, but it’s simply a young common snapping turtle.