Alligator Snapping Turtles like Leonardo (scientific name Macrochelys temminckii) are truly amazing animals. They can grow to more than 100 kilos (220 pounds) and over a metre (40 inches) long, and are estimated to live up to 200 years in the wild. Leonardo is about 40-60 years old, and weighs 45 kilos, so he still has a lot of growing to do! These turtles were once regarded as rather sedentary (ie remaining in one place most of the time). This was because people would generally see them during the day, when they are the least active and tend lie around. However, at night they become active hunters, and in fact can make extensive movements. Scientists have now studied them using modern radio tagging techniques, and followed the movements of 11 turtles over 3 months in Louisiana USA. The range of daily travel was 28 to 109 meters per day, and their estimated minimum home range size was 18 to 196 hectares, or 44 to 480 acres (Sloan and Taylor 1987). In Arkansas, 11 tagged turtles moved both upstream and downstream with a maximum recorded distance of 1.8 kilometers (Trauth et al 1998). In Oklahoma, a turtle moved upstream 27-30 kilometers over three years (Wickham 1922), and another travelled 16 kilometers in two-months (Riedle et al 2006). Another covered 7 kilometers over five years in Kansas (Shipman et al 1991). People also once thought that alligator snapping turtles became less active as they grew older, but in fact it’s just the opposite. During the day, these turtles sit quietly at the bottom of the water with their mouths open, literally luring fish into striking distance (Ernst et al 1994), and small fish like minnows are often caught in this way by younger alligator snapping turtles. However, adults must eat a greater quantity of larger fish to survive, and hence must forage more actively (Pritchard 1979). Leonardo is a fabulous creature, truly a “living dinosaur”, and was definitely never meant to be kept in a small tank. Please keep sharing the petition to make sure he gets the new home he deserves. #SaveLeonardo References: SLOAN, K. N., and TAYLOR, D. 1987. Habitats and movements of adult Alligator Snapping Turtles in northeast Louisiana. Proceedings of the Annual Conference, Southeastern Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies 41:343–34. TRAUTH, S., WILHIDE, J., and HOLT, A. 1998. Population structure and movement patterns of alligator snapping turtles (Macroclemys temminckii) in northeastern Arkansas. Chelonian Conservation Biology 3:64–70. WICKHAM, M.M. 1922. Notes on the migration of Macrochelys lacertina. Proceedings of the Oklahoma Academy of Science 2:20–22. (Note: the name Macroclemys lacertina was used to refer to the Alligator Snapping Turtle, but that is a junior synonym). RIEDLE, J D., SHIPMAN, P.A., FOX, S.F. and LESLIE, D.M. 2006. Microhabitat use, home range, and movements of the Alligator Snapping Turtle, Macrochelys temminckii, in Oklahoma. The Southeastern Naturalist 51:35-40. SHIPMAN, P.A., EDDS, D.R. and BLEX, D. 1991. Report on the recapture of an alligator snapping turtle (Macroclemys temminckii) in Kansas. Kansas Herpetological Society Newsletter 85: 8-9. ERNST, C., BARBOUR, R. and LOVICH, J. 1994. Turtles of the United States and Canada. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press. PRITCHARD, P. 1979. Encyclopedia of Turtles. Neptune, New Jersey: T.F.H. Publications, Inc.