A tale of two turtles

I crossed paths with a pair of iconic Pennsylvania reptiles last week. One was a brawny snapping turtle that’s made a number of repeat appearances in my backyard pond. On Saturday morning he was lazily lounging on the surface, keeping a steady eye on me as I watched from the dock. Two days later I noticed what looked like an old stump in the backyard about fifteen yards or so from the pond’s berm. Closer investigation revealed it was indeed, the snapper, hauling his awkward bulk away from the pond and toward the West Branch of the Brandywine about 80 yards away. Snappers can be quick and agile when in the water, but on land, not so much.

At my approach he just lay there, slathered in duckweed having just emerged from the pond. But he turned his head and hissed at me when I poked his shell with my toe. Like every other snapping turtle I’ve encountered, he looked absolutely

prehistoric. Small wonder, since these are among the oldest living reptiles, having evolved more than 200 million years ago. Snappers can live to be 40 years old and typically weigh between 15 and 45 pounds. I estimated this guy probably weighed around 25 pounds, not the largest snapper I’ve encountered here, but big enough.

I was well aware that snappers are aggressive and have powerful jaws able to deliver a bite that can sever a finger, so I stayed well clear of his head. I considered scooping him up in my fishing net, tossing him into the bed of my pickup, taking him for a ride downstream, then releasing him into the roiling waters of the Brandywine. But on second thought, I decided to leave this lumbering leviathon to his own ends. When I checked back an hour later he was gone, no doubt having pushed on toward the creek.

The snapping turtle, aka Chelydra serpentina, is an omnivore that, since it spends most of its life in the water, is partial to seafood, preferring a menu that includes fish, crayfish, frogs, and small snakes. Its diet is rounded out by insects, plants, carrion, and even small mammals.

Like all reptiles and amphibians in our state, the snapping turtle comes under the jurisdiction of the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission. While I myself maintain a reptile-free diet, folks with a hankerin’ for snapper soup can harvest as many as 15 snapping turtles each day during a season which runs from July 1 through Oct. 31.

On the other hand, there’s no open season on the protected box turtle I bumped into as it plodded across my driveway earlier in the week. If I recall correctly, when I was a kid roaming the woods behind my grandparents’ home in East Goshen, a day rarely passed when I didn’t stumble across a box turtle or two. In the intervening decades their numbers seem to have declined and my encounters with this species, Terrapene carolina carolina, are becoming increasingly uncommon.

Like snappers, box turtles are omnivorous and will devour pretty much anything edible that can fit into their beak-like mouths. These delicacies may include berries, fruit, leaves, flowers, mushrooms, earthworms, and a broad array of insects. Unlike snappers which will automatically try to bite you if you get too close, the box turtle is docile and rather than attack any human it encounters, will defensively withdraw into its shell

Unlike the large, aquatic snapping turtle, landdwelling box turtles average just 5 to 7 inches in length and reach a maximum weight of about two pounds. They can live to be a century old but are slow to mature and reproduce. Since they’re slow crawlers, they’re very vulnerable to traffic when crossing roads and to farm equipment when plodding through fields, meadows, and pastures. Unfortunately, this species produces small clutches of eggs and its hatchlings suffer from high mortality rates. Habitat loss is another factor that may serious contribute to their declining numbers.

STATEWIDE ARCHER SEASON OPENS SATURDAY

Pennsylvania bowhunters hoping to fill their whitetail deer tags can look forward to the statewide opening day this Saturday, Sept. 30, and a generous season that runs through Nov. 11. The extended archery deer season here in Wildlife Management Units 5C and 5D (and 2B out west) opened back on Sept. 16 and runs clear through Nov. 25.

JUNIOR HUNTS FOR SMALL GAME SET

Junior hunts for squirrel and rabbit are set to open this Saturday, Sept. 30, and run through Oct. 14 when the regular season opens. For pheasant, the junior hunt runs from Oct. 7 through Oct. 14. The regular season on ringnecks won’t begin until Oct. 21. For more information on the junior hunts and Mentored Youth, see page 50 of the 2017-18 Pennsylvania Hunting and Trapping Digest.

FRESHWATER FISHING REPORTS

With the official arrival of autumn, although emphasis in the outdoors shifts to hunting, it’s also among the best times of the year for freshwater fishing. The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission (PFBC) advises that Deep Creek Lake in Montgomery County is a great place for kids to enjoy a great day of fishing. The lake, which is stocked seasonally with trout by the PFBC, also sustains a great bass population; as well as plenty of panfish; including crappies. The park’s main entrance offers plenty of parking, facilities, playgrounds, and access to all the hiking and biking trails.

In southern Chester County, the PFBC reports that anglers on the Octoraro Reservoir are catching nice crappies, primarily in the 12 and 13 inch range. The folks at the PFBC recommend fishing from a boat and casting around the many fallen trees that ring the lake. Bait the hook with a fathead minnow under a pencil bobber. Use four to six feet of line below the bobber fishing close to the structure and you will be in the zone. For more information on the crappie bite or to set up a trip, visit the Fishing Headquarters at 212 Spruce Grove Road, Kirkwood, PA. 17536, or phone 717-529-2488.

In northern Chesco at Marsh Creek Lake, bluegills and crappies are being caught on mealworms and wax worms, minnows and small jigs. You’ll find the fish in and around structure along or near the shore. Bass fishing reports have been somewhat mixed. Anglers catching bass have reported taking them on jigs, spinners and crankbaits with the best colors to use on Marsh Creek Lake are large black, purple and pumpkinseed worms. The best live baits are crayfish, minnows and night crawlers.

Box turtle numbers have declined over the years due to habitat loss, low birth rate, and mortality from cars and farm machinery.

PHOTOS BY TOM TATUM — DIGITAL FIRST MEDIA Unlike the land-dwelling box turtle, which weighs only a pound or two, aquatic snapping turtles like this can reach 50 pounds or more.