Snapping Turtles Hatching

[Catherine]

The video is speeded up otherwise it would take forever. Reptiles are slow to hatch.
These are local Ontario snapping turtles being incubated at The Toronto Wildlife Centre.

Quote:What can you do to help hatchling turtles?
Simple: leave 'em alone.

After incubating all summer, Ontario turtles are finally coming out of their shells. Unlike mammal and bird species, turtles do not require parental care, and are fully independent when they hatch.

Unless they appear injured or are in immediate danger, they don't need our help (despite their tiny size). Discourage others from taking young turtles from the wild for pets. They don't thrive in captivity and many grow to unmanageable sizes. Snapping turtles, like the tiny hatchlings to the left, can have a lifespan of over 100 years in the wild.

7-out-of-8 Ontario turtle species are considered to be species-at-risk. With the support of TD FEF,

we are incubating and hatching turtle eggs collected from injured turtles in care and releasing the young turtles in the wild.

This is the message that comes with the video. The Toronto Wildlife Centre does a lot of good work.