Snapping Turtles are laying their eggs now for Camera Critters!

This snapping turtle above was seen near the south end of the highway bridge where it had completed its egg laying.




I didn't get to see it laying its eggs but I could see the place where the soil had been disturbed, churned over where this female probably deposited and buried her eggs.. Other years I have watched these huge reptiles laying their eggs along the railroad tracks and expect to see them at the same location this year. Perhaps some day next week. We have been monitoring this activity each June, since 2001. They seem to be early this year as I had assumed, as so much spring activity, returning migrating birds and early blossoming of wildflowers: all seem to be a bit ahead of schedule, so I am not surprised to see snapping turtles laying their eggs earlier either. It is usually in the late teens or 2o's of June that I usually see these turtles laying their eggs.

Above : the tail of a snapping turtle

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A second snapping turtle laying eggs has been found by the coordinator of our turtle watch team, David Olive. This second snapping turtle was found in the vicinity of the railroad tracks.

It had left
the location where we think it laid its eggs is seen above. Perhaps it will be returning back to the river soon. That is the pattern we have observed other years after the egg laying had been completed. I shall be looking for more snapping turtles in the same area tomorrow and expect that others will be found there.Above,This is the second snapping turtle we saw today and we assume it had laid its eggs from the disturbed signs in the soil near by.