Snapping turtles are not the kind of animal that most people think of as “cute” with their funnel-shaped noses, thick, warty bodies, and armored tails. Box turtles are cute. Sea turtles are adorable.

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 ...

On a sunny afternoon in late July, I spotted this turtle walking slowly across a grassy pond levee. This is a native water turtle called the common snapping turtle. It is our second-largest snapping ...