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Discover Nature (Missouri Department of Conservation)

Discover Nature: Snapping Turtle Eggs Hatch

KBIA | By Kyle Felling
Published August 16, 2018 at 4:03 PM CDT
Snapping Turtle (Common Snapping Turtle) Hatchling
Because of predation, eggs, hatchlings, and young snapping turtles have an abysmally low survival rate, until at age four or so they have gotten large enough that few animals can prey on them. ";

Discover nature this week, and watch for baby snapping turtles, hatching from eggs near Missouri’s streams, ponds, and wetlands.

 

Snapping turtles occur statewide – anywhere there’s permanent water. They prefer bodies of water with mud bottoms, abundant aquatic vegetation, and submerged logs. 

 

Females travel overland during egg-laying season – mostly in late spring and early summer – and are often killed by cars. 

 

Females dig nests in deep sand or loose soil and deposit up to two clutches of 20-30 eggs per season. 

 

Studies have shown that up to 84 percent of these nests can be destroyed by hungry predators such as skunks, racoons, and mink. 

 

In mid-August, surviving eggs hatch and baby snapping turtles emerge. These turtles take 4-7 years to reach maturity and can often live for more than 100 years. 

 

Snapping turtles help keep populations of many aquatic animals and plants in check.  While they may become a nuisance in some artificial ponds, studies have shown that they do not harm game fish or waterfowl populations in natural conditions. 

 

Learn more about snapping turtles with the Missouri Department of Conservation’s online field guide.  

 

Discover Nature is sponsored by the Missouri Department of Conservation. 

 
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Kyle Felling
Kyle Felling’s work at KBIA spans more than three decades. In 2025, he became KBIA and KMUC's Station Manager. He began volunteering at the station while he was a Political Science student at the University of Missouri. After being hired as a full-time announcer, he served as the long-time local host of NPR’s All Things Considered on KBIA, and was Music Director for a number of years. Starting in 2010, Kyle became KBIA’s Program Director, overseeing on-air programming and operations while training and supervising the station’s on-air staff. During that period, KBIA regularly ranked among the top stations in the Columbia market, and among the most listened to stations in the country. He was instrumental in the launch of KBIA’s sister station, Classical 90.5 FM in 2015, and helped to build it into a strong community resource for classical music. Kyle has also worked as an instructor in the MU School of Journalism, training the next generation of journalists and strategic communicators. In his spare time, he enjoys playing competitive pinball, reading comic books and Joan Didion, watching the Kansas City Chiefs, and listening to Bruce Springsteen and the legendary E Street Band.
See stories by Kyle Felling
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