OT: There is a giant turtle in my yard/on my step (pics)

[SleepyonMagnoliaSt]

He's really big!

[chunkyfrog]

Hey! It's Ted! Hi, Ted!

[SleepyonMagnoliaSt]

The kids are calling him Raphael

[SleepyonMagnoliaSt]

Hey! It's Ted! Hi, Ted!

LOL I've never seen a turtle in the wild this big (Central Indiana, not really BIG turtle country)

Usually we just get those tiny box ones

[ChrisD]

Looks like a snapping turtle. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_snapping_turtle

I'd be careful. It there a pond/lake nearby that you could encourage it to go to?

FYI -
The common snapping turtle is not an ideal pet. Its neck is very flexible, and the turtle can bite its handler even if picked up by the sides of its shell. It will make a hissing sound when it is threatened or encountered; however, when in the water and unprovoked, they are fairly docile toward humans.

It is a common misconception that common snapping turtles may be safely picked up by the tail with no harm to the animal; in fact, this has a high chance of injuring the turtle, especially the tail itself and the vertebral column. Lifting the turtle with the hands is difficult and dangerous. Snappers can stretch their necks back across their own carapace and to their hind feet on either side to bite. Also, their claws are sharp and capable of inflicting significant lacerations. When they feel stressed, they will release a musky odor from behind their legs.

It may be tempting to rescue a snapping turtle found in a road by getting it to bite a stick and then dragging it out of immediate danger. This action can, however, severely scrape the legs and underside of the turtle. The safest way to pick up a common snapping turtle is holding it by its plastron. The plastron is the nearly flat part of the shell structure of a turtle, what one would call the belly. I guess you pick it up like a waiter carrying a tray??

Chris

[SleepyonMagnoliaSt]

Looks like a snapping turtle. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_snapping_turtle

I'd be careful. It there a pond/lake nearby that you could encourage it to go to?

Chris

Oh we are being careful. I'm not letting my kids outside until he's gone. No pond or lake. We do live near a creek... I thought maybe he was on his way there?

[Pugsy]

Do you live near some sort of water source? Pond, creek, lake?

Don't stick your finger in its mouth...it will hurt. Looks like one of the "snapping" turtle varieties...they usually are rather grumpy.

I once saw a really massive turtle. I swear I saw it. I was on my way to work one morning. It took up pretty much the entire right lane of a double lane highway...head just going off the pavement and tail on center line. Everyone was driving completely around it. To run over it would have caused a lot of damage to the car.

My husband stopped one night (it was dark) about a mile from the house to pick up and move one of those snapping turtles out of the road. Just as he picked it up and it started hissing at him two deer jumped out behind a tree right next to him. Turtle went flying through the air and he had to go find it to make sure that it wasn't upside down...and the deer went off laughing about scaring the crap out of one of those "human things"

[pootsie]

He or she is cute.

Your state agency would prefer you get him or her to that pond as well:
http://www.in.gov/dnr/fishwild/3327.htm

[Pugsy]

Looks like he is one of the "common" snapping turtles as opposed to the alligator variety.

http://www.wildlifedepartment.com/wildl ... ing_Turtle

He can be moved if a person is careful by picking him up on the edges of his shell more towards to back legs. Just stay out of reach of the jaws.
Or take a broom and herd him towards the water our out of your yard.
Keep pets away as well as kids. The jaws are incredibly strong.

[SleepyonMagnoliaSt]

Raphael is on his way towards the creek. He's most of the way down to the water. Well out of the way of my yard and kids. It was interesting to 'meet' him though

[ellen1159]

Where I live in Connecticut it's not uncommon to see snapping turtles travel from pond to pond and they'll use any route available. I've seen much larger ones, with shells over two feet long, on golf courses. They can actually push up on their strong hind legs and "jump" up to grab food. Their necks are especially long and flexible so if you had to pick one up, you'd have to grab the shell as close to the tail as possible.

I give 'em a wide berth. A friend of mine swears he saw one once with a shell nearly three feet long that took down an adult swan in a pond.

[caffeinatedcfo]

Hahaha! Now you can start your own reality tv show wrangling turtles.

[SleepyonMagnoliaSt]

We're having a crazy amount of rain so likely he's moving from one flooded location to a non flooded spot. Poor Raphael!

[salton]

Pugsy You saw an Alligator Snapping Turtle. Very rare now. They get huge. It would seem to take up the whole lane if it was a full grown one.
Grandma used to say if you get bit by a Turtle, it won't let go until it hears thunder.

[Stormynights]

Pugsy You saw an Alligator Snapping Turtle. Very rare now. They get huge. It would seem to take up the whole lane if it was a full grown one.
Grandma used to say if you get bit by a Turtle, it won't let go until it hears thunder.

My husband and I saw one crossing the road about 2 weeks ago. It wasn't nearly that big but from a ways back it looked like a baby alligator. When we got closer we could tell it was just a turtle. We were relieved because we don't want alligators in Oklahoma.