We have a small pond that we use to "summer" our ducks on. Last fall a snapping turtle moved into the pond and killed one duck and maimed another. Can someone help us with a suggestion to remove the turtle. We want to capture it and relocate it if at all possible. We would appreciate learning how to build a "turtle trap." Thank you

-- Treasure Hunt Farm (shwthf2@aol.com), May 01, 2001

Answers

Use a piece of raw chicken and a large hook (fish hook) on some heavy line- cable lead is good idea. You can catch a turtle like catching fish. Or, maybe you could drive a bunch of wooden stakes in with a gate attached on shore and lure the turtle in... wade in and shut gate. Use something really heavy to capture turtle then- like a moving quilt. I have seen snappers bite through a broom stick- jaw strength is amazing! AND REMEMBER if you can touch him... he can bite you. Plus he can bite you if you are within reaching distance. Snappers have quite long necks and get mad easily. Consider yourself warned. Why dont you just club him and have some turtle soup!

-- Kevin in NC (vantravlrs@aol.com), May 01, 2001.

When I was a kid, about 6 or 7 years old, me and my cousin were down at the creek, poking around in it like we usually were. Well, we caught sight of this big turtle, picked him up without a care in the world and stuck him in our big bucket, which we always had handy when we found such exciting things as big old turtles. Took him on home. The dads took one look and all hell broke loose. My uncle got a thick limb and let that snapper at it. Imagine if it would have gotten ahold of our little toes or fingers. We knew what a snapper looked like and didn't forget from that day on. He sure tasted good though!

-- vicki g. (thga76@aol.com), May 01, 2001.

There are turtle traps out there. Kens in Georgia has them. Basically. they are composed of a net enclosed underwater structure that the top floats and has a wide board across the middle of the structure that extends past the edge of the net that the turtles get up on to sun then dive back in only to be caught in the net. I would think however, that if you KNOW you have one, you have many more. Try sitting at the pond edge during the day and watching for heads to pop up. Take the shotgun, load with buckshot, and shoot everyone you see. Even this will probably not eradicate the snappers and you will kill other turtles that pose no harm. May want to rethink what to do with the ducks.

-- Terri Perry (teperry@stargate.net), May 01, 2001.

A Simple but Effective Turtle Trap

clic k here

-- Earthmama (earthmama48@yahoo.com), May 01, 2001.

I have to get three or four out of our farm pond every year. If you think there is one in your pond try the chicken and large hook in one of the previous post. As for picking them up they can't reach you as long as you have them by the tail. You can also get them behind the neck but this can be dangerous unless you have personally seen it done. The largest one I have personally cought weighed in at 57 pounds. His head was over 6 inches across. Was delicious still have the shell hanging on the wall out in the shop. I just try the chicken acouple of times a year and keep them out of the pond. They will eat all your ducks and lots of your fish. So if they eat my fish that I am planing to eat, well they are the next meal.

-- David (bluewaterfarm@mindspring.com), May 01, 2001.

make a 3'X3' frame out of 2x4's. Make a basket out of chicken wire to fit on the inside of this frame. Basket needs to be about 2' deep. Next take a bunch of finishing nails about 4" long and nail these on the inside of the frame. spaced about 1" apart all around the inside. Next glue peices of styrofoam about 4" thick and 4" wide, all around the bottom of the 2x4's. This will make it float on top of the water. Put chicken guts, liver, or dead fish in a clothe bag and drop into basket and place in pond. The turtles can get in the trap, but they can't get out because of the finishing nails on the inside of the frame. If this doesn't work then do what I do. I get up high on a hill or in a tree and wait for them to come up for air. I then snipper shoot them with a 22 scoped rifle which makes it a lot of fun.

-- Russell Hays (rhays@sstelco.com), May 03, 2001.

Why would you want to trap a snapping turtle? Where would you put it that it would not act like a snapping turtle? If you put it in another pond it will still kill fish, birds, or something. I had a snapping turtle in my pond last summer. It took a while to get it but I gave it lead poisioning. (I shot it.) I also had stocked the pond and had geese on it. I would rather have fish and geese then a snapping turlte.

Tom S.

-- Tom S. (trdsshepard@yahoo.com), May 06, 2001.

My Dad and I used to catch them when I was young. Tie a fishing line to a clorox bottle or something similar (I don't think the plastic milk bottles would be strong enough), tie a fishing line to it, about five feet worth, tie a steel leader to the end of that and attach a strong fishing hook. Bait the hook with chicken liver (nice big chunk of it) and throw it out in the pond.

Come back in a day or two and if there's a turtle on the hook, the bottle will be laying against the side. Once you pull him in, give him a nice sharp knife to bite on, then slice his jaws open so he can't bite.

Cleaning him will is a different story altogether. I suggest asking around and getting someone to show you the technique. It'll be well worth it - fried turtle is awful good! The neck meat is the best....

-- Jeff (wiwacb@hotmail.com), May 07, 2001.