New Records for the Alligator Snapping Turtle in Southeastern Oklahoma

During the past half-century, it is probable that there has been a drastic decline in al-li ga tor snapping turtles (Macrochelys tem-minckii) in southeastern Oklahoma (Glass 1949, Heck 1998, Riedle et al 2005). Few of these turtles are now found in this area, and reports are rare. This note doc u ments three new records for this turtle. On 28 June 2005, R. Bill Webb of Ida-bel, McCurtain County, told me that, in late March 2000, he observed two fi shermen with a large al li ga tor snapping turtle that had been hooked in a front foot on a trot-line baited with perch in Walnut Bayou 5.0 km south of Tom, McCurtain County. The fi sh er men were planning to kill it, so Webb pur chased the turtle, which weighed 46.3 kg on a cotton scale, and returned it un harmed to the creek