Alligator snapping turtles are listed as a threatened species. The state is taking steps to protect them.
If you report someone for poaching alligator snapping turtles, you could earn reward money. That’s the message from Texas Parks and Wildlife.
Alligator snapping turtles, which live in freshwater, are listed as a threatened species. In Texas, it’s illegal to harvest them.
“The high survivorship and long lives of adults makes populations of alligator snapping turtles very sensitive to the removal of even a small number of breeding adults,” Paul Crump, TPWD Herpetologist, said in a news release. “That is why Texas prohibited collection of this species back in the ’80s and why we need the help of Texans who work and spend time on the rivers in East Texas to reduce poaching. We want to keep this species around to help maintain our healthy rivers and streams.”
Normally, the reward for reporting wildlife crime is $1,000. With money raised by TPWD through its conservation license plate program, reward money for tips about alligator snapping turtles that lead to convictions could be increased to $2,000.
As for why people poach alligator snapping turtles, they are a popular food item in Louisiana, where there’s a one-per-day limit, according to Texas Parks and Wildlife.
You can report wildlife crime by calling Texas Parks and Wildlife’s crime-stoppers program at 800-792-GAME (4263).