Massive turtle found at municipal park
DNR believes it to be common snapping turtle, largest of its kind in Nova Scotia
Sean Mcneil was walking in Trenton Park earlier this week when he came across an unusual sight.
There was a large turtle on the ground with eagles hovering above. The turtle appeared unwell and Mcneil suspected if he left it where it was, it would soon become a meal for the large birds. He picked it up and took it to his home in nearby Frasers Mountain, a short distance outside Trenton, hoping if it warmed up it might come around.
“I think he may have come out of hibernation a bit early, maybe due to the weather we’ve been having,” Mcneil speculated.
Unfortunately, the turtle couldn’t rally and died shortly after.
Mcneil said he was amazed at the size of the turtle. He’d only ever seen ones about the size of a person’s hand before.
This one is considerably bigger and he estimates it weighed around 40 pounds.
Bruce Nunn, spokesperson for the Nova Scotia Department of Natural Resources, said they had one of their biologists look at a picture of the turtle. They believe it is a common snapping turtle which, according information on the Nova Scotia Museum’s website, is the biggest freshwater turtle in Nova Scotia. The snapping turtle’s shells are typically between 22 cm and 35 cm long and the turtles usually weigh between 4 kg and 16 kg. Mcneil said the turtle he found has a shell with a length of approximately 40 cm.
The snapping turtle hibernates underwater in winter typically between October and May, according to information on the Department of Natural Resources website. According to DNR they are most common in the southwest portion of the province and less common on the northeastern mainland.
Dr. Steve Mockford, a biology professor at Acadia University, said it’s possible the turtle came out of hibernation early.
“It can be quite a risk. This spring we’ve had a warm period followed by extreme cold.”
At 40 cm, he said it’s clearly an adult size, but added these turtles can vary widely.
Snapping turtles spend the majority of their time in the water, rarely leaving so people often don’t get to see their full size out of the water. They are omnivores and will eat plant material or small fish.