Snapping Turtle Viciously Bites Man's Nose

Sep 18, 2018 by apost team

There are many types of turtles in the animal kingdom, and this young man from Burlington, Massachusettes might have mistaken the creature in his hands for something else. He also might have thought, unlike far too many people these days, that every animal will behave just like your pet dog or cat.

He was not holding a dog or cat, however, and not even a peaceful box turtle or slider. Perhaps if he would have known the turtle was, in fact, a snapping turtle, he would not have picked it up at all. Snapping turtles, by definition, snap -- a lesson that this young man learned very quickly.

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Snapping turtles bite really fast and really hard. It's how they catch their food. Their bite strength is only a little bit weaker than a human's, and think of all the tough, hard, and crunchy things we eat. It's a lucky thing this hapless man did not tangle with an alligator snapping turtle.

These much larger cousins of the one in the video have a bite strength as great as a lion.

Still, this turtle proved his strength. As the young man held the turtle by the shell, he tenderly stroked it and crooned, "Who's a good boy?" Perhaps he thought that if it worked on his dog back home, it would work on the turtle too. Petting and talking to a turtle might seem silly enough, but then the man went in for a big kiss. This is just another example of how some people do not understand nature.

Understanding came very quickly though.

The next scene in the video shows the snapping turtle reacting as instinct dictates. Instead of cowering in its shell and accepting the kiss, it snapped. Quick as lightning, the flexible neck shot out, twisted around to face his misguided handler, and grabbed the guy's face in its powerful jaws.

Luckily, it let go before it took a chunk out of the foolish man. He pulled away quickly, but not fast enough to prevent damage. See it in the video below!

You can laugh and shake your head, but also learn that snapping turtles do not respond well to being treated like a pampered pet. Pass this message on to your friends!