NEW ORLEANS -- It's a marvelously ugly beast, with spiked and ridged armor, a sharply hooked beak, a fishing lure in its mouth and a nasty bite. But the alligator snapping turtle's hard shell holds ...

Snapping turtles often get a bad reputation for their hooked jaws and rugged appearance. They look like creatures built only for defense, but the truth is far more interesting. These reptiles have ...

Travis Thomas grew up on the Santa Fe River, but never imagined he’d lean over its glassy waters and hoist up a 65-pound prehistoric beast. The creature at hand was an alligator snapping turtle: ...

Some historians have suggested the giant turtle reported in 1948 was an alligator snapping turtle, pictured here. Other experts disagree with this theory. Illustration by Emily Lankiewicz / DeAgostini ...

This week, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced in a press release that a prehistoric species of turtle native to Florida is officially a federally threatened species under the Endangered ...

Alligator snapping turtles haven’t been seen in the wild in Kansas since 1991. But in the fall of 2024, the state plans to reintroduce them to local waterways. Kansas Aquatic Species Recovery Program ...