Snapper Close-Up

A close up of the old turtle's head and neck.

A venerable common snapping turtle, Chelydra serpentina. This old turtle dragged itself right under me as I sat on a concrete culvert to enter a pond adjacent to the river. I took a few photos of it as it exited the tunnel on the other side. It's too bad this photo doesn't give much sense of scale, because this reptile was HUGE. I'm guessing the carapace was around 2 to 2 1/2 feet long, and the head at least as big as my fist. Mighty impressive animal.

Indian Island, Maine.