Snapping Turtle Seen On Chicago River Nicknamed “Chonkosaurus”

Written by on May 15, 2023

And the nickname is certainly appropriate.

Joey Santore and a friend were kayaking along the Chicago River last week when they noticed a snapping turtle. Of course, on any other day this wouldn’t be that unusual. Until they got closer and saw just how big the animal was.

Joey managed to film the beast and the clip immediately went viral.

Chief wildlife biologist, Chris Anchor from the Forest Preserves of Cook County, said that a snapping turtle sighting like this is pretty rare.

He told WMAQ-TV:

“So my guess is that this animal had crawled out of the river to try and gather as much heat as it could in the sunshine,” and added, that anyone encountering a snapping turtle should not disturb it or try to catch it. “Enjoy it. Leave it alone,” Anchor said.

Yeah. No worries there.


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