According to wtop.com, "The alligator snapping turtle can reach more 200 pounds, and at 65 pounds, VDGIF said the animal, who has been named Lord Fairfax, was a youngster. It is now at the Virginia Zoo in Norfolk, where it will hopefully be part of a new exhibit. The alligator snapping turtle (Macrochelys temminckii) is native to river drainages that flow in the Gulf of Mexico, east to Georgia and the panhandle of Florida and westward to East Texas. The Chelydra serpentina is a species of “common” snapping turtle native to Virginia."
As per wtop.com, "Turtles have been popular pets for several years. However, some well-meaning pet owners have been releasing these turtles into the wild, VDGIF said. The sale of turtles less than 4 inches in shell length was banned in 1975 by the Food and Drug Administration in 1975 due to the risk of salmonella poisoning in children. Although the threat to humans was minimal, the alligator snapping turtle would have most likely experienced a slow death as a result of either freezing or starvation, VDGIF said."
A large turtle was reported crossing a road in Fairfax County, Virginia. Animal Protection Police was surprised to find a 65-pound alligator snapping turtle. Police captured it and took it to the Fairfax County Animal Shelter, where a biologist from the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, or VDGIF, picked it up.
According to wtop.com, "The alligator snapping turtle can reach more 200 pounds, and at 65 pounds, VDGIF said the animal, who has been named Lord Fairfax, was a youngster. It is now at the Virginia Zoo in Norfolk, where it will hopefully be part of a new exhibit. The alligator snapping turtle (Macrochelys temminckii) is native to river drainages that flow in the Gulf of Mexico, east to Georgia and the panhandle of Florida and westward to East Texas. The Chelydra serpentina is a species of “common” snapping turtle native to Virginia."
As per wtop.com, "Turtles have been popular pets for several years. However, some well-meaning pet owners have been releasing these turtles into the wild, VDGIF said. The sale of turtles less than 4 inches in shell length was banned in 1975 by the Food and Drug Administration in 1975 due to the risk of salmonella poisoning in children. Although the threat to humans was minimal, the alligator snapping turtle would have most likely experienced a slow death as a result of either freezing or starvation, VDGIF said."
According to wtop.com, "The alligator snapping turtle can reach more 200 pounds, and at 65 pounds, VDGIF said the animal, who has been named Lord Fairfax, was a youngster. It is now at the Virginia Zoo in Norfolk, where it will hopefully be part of a new exhibit. The alligator snapping turtle (Macrochelys temminckii) is native to river drainages that flow in the Gulf of Mexico, east to Georgia and the panhandle of Florida and westward to East Texas. The Chelydra serpentina is a species of “common” snapping turtle native to Virginia."
As per wtop.com, "Turtles have been popular pets for several years. However, some well-meaning pet owners have been releasing these turtles into the wild, VDGIF said. The sale of turtles less than 4 inches in shell length was banned in 1975 by the Food and Drug Administration in 1975 due to the risk of salmonella poisoning in children. Although the threat to humans was minimal, the alligator snapping turtle would have most likely experienced a slow death as a result of either freezing or starvation, VDGIF said."
