- [Coyote] You guys wanna see how powerful the bite is
of the Central American snapping turtle?
(yelling)
(dramatic music)
(animal noises)
My fascination with snapping turtles
has spanned nearly 30 years of time,
and no matter how many
of these prehistoric-looking reptiles I catch,
I can't wait for the next encounter.
On The Brave Wilderness channel,
we've featured the two most recognizable species,
the highly aggressive common snapping turtle,
and its much larger, lumbering cousin,
the alligator snapping turtle.
But did you know there is another species?
And it just happens to be located in Costa Rica.
What's goin' on guys?
Right now we are on location in Costa Rica,
filming, once again, at the Costa Rican
Amphibian Research Center,
and as you can see right behind us here,
this is our jungle base camp.
Now we have been to Costa Rica nine times
and every time we visit this location, I am always looking
for the Central American snapping turtle.
And lo' and behold, there is a juvenile one
right down here in this pond.
I've been seeing it for a couple days now,
and I did post some photos on Instagram.
And we're gonna get it up close
for the cameras this morning.
You probably can't see it on the GoPro,
Mario, you recognize it down there
blended in with the leaves?
- [Mario] I see it.
- [Coyote] About right there in that beam of light.
Okay, so I'm gonna catch the turtle,
we're gonna get it up close for the cameras,
and do a quick little off-the-cuff presentation.
Ready?
- [Mario] Ready.
- [Coyote] I dunno if this is deep or not though,
so I guess we'll find out.
(grunting)
Oh, feisty and muddy.
Oh, yes!
There you have it, look at that guy!
Oh, look at that!
Showing an aggressive-- Oh!
An aggressive display right from the start.
Now, this is the Central American snapping turtle
and you guys are probably saying to yourselves,
Coyote, it looks just like a common snapping turtle,
why are you so excited about this?
This is actually a different species, right?
So the common snapping turtle, Chelydra serpentina,
is the one that we find in the United States.
As you guys also know,
there is the alligator snapping turtle,
the largest snapping turtle species.
This species specifically doesn't grow
quite as large as the other two,
but it doesn't mean it's any less exciting.
Look at you with that mouth all the way--
Oh, you wanna bite the hat?
Let's see what happens.
Yep, a little chomp on the brim of the hat.
Yeah, you're not gonna get much purchase there, are you?
So, what is the difference between this species
and the common snapping turtle,
considering the fact that they look so similar?
First of all, let's take a look--
Can you behave for just a second?
Let's take a look at the plastron on him.
(grunts) Oh, he is so strong!
Notice this black and white coloration, right?
And as we know, the plastrons on snapping turtles
are smaller than other turtles,
which means they can't tuck into their shells,
which is why they develop these defensive techniques.
Yes, I see, you are so intimidating!
But you'll also notice how that black and white
also transitions down into the tail.
Look at the speckling on the underside of the tail.
How cool looking is that?
Now, this is a voracious predator, just like its cousins,
and what they will do this time of day
is slowly move through the environment.
And if you notice, the top of the turtle's shell,
which as you guys know is called the carapace,
is very dark in coloration,
whereas the underside is very light.
Now what that allows this turtle to do
is hunt near the surface, so if a tadpole or a fish
is looking up or coming near the surface,
the turtle just looks like it's sunlight
coming down through the water.
If it's hunting at the surface,
its shell also helps keep it camouflaged
from any potential predators, because believe it or not,
a turtle like this does still have predators.
I know, I see you really wanna bite something.
You guys wanna see how powerful
the bite is of the Central American snapping turtle?
(mumbles), yeah?
- [Mario] Yeah!
- [Coyote] All right, let's see what happens.
Ready?
(inhales sharply)
(yelling in pain)
Ooh, that's a pretty good chomp right there.
(gasping in pain)
It's worse when he turns to the side.
(yelling)
Let me have my finger back, please, please!
(groaning in pain)
Ahh, there we go.
A bit of power, but not big enough to break skin yet.
Now, one of the coolest features about this turtle is--
I don't know if you can see these little fleshy appendages
coming off the bottom of the chin there.
Those work just like the tongue
of the alligator snapping turtle.
And what this turtle will do is stay there underwater,
and those little appendages move
and it draws in fish or tadpoles.
And then, of course, once they get close (gulps).
They lash out and snap up their meal.
Wow, this is such a cool turtle!
Another really distinct feature that you'll notice
is look at the very distinct lines.
The dark coloration between the forelimbs
and the hind limbs, right?
So that blended camouflage between the bottom of the turtle
and the top of the turtle--
I have to keep maneuvering my finger there
so that I do not take another bite.
Wow, well what's so cool about this
is that it's the first time that I have found
and caught a Central American snapping turtle.
So for me, this is a completely new species.
Now, you may be looking at this turtle
and saying to yourselves, well it's pretty small,
do they only get this big?
No, they do get bigger.
This one's probably about
two to two and a half years of age,
and they grow to be about 20 to 30 pounds.
So, on par with the common snapping turtle.
But nonetheless, it always excites me
to be able to find a reptile as cool as this.
As you guys know, I absolutely love mud dragons.
And on my ninth trip here to Costa Rica,
I finally managed to get this species
up close for the cameras.
I'm Coyote Peterson, be brave, stay wild,
we'll see you on the next location.
All right, ready to let him go?
- [Mario] Yep.
- [Coyote] All right, buddy.
Let's watch as he disappears back
into the mud to continue hunting for fish and tadpoles.
Bye bud!
Whoa, there he goes.
Finding and catching a Central American snapping turtle
has always been one of my goals
when it comes to visiting Costa Rica.
And while it may not have been a record breaking giant,
this little turtle was just as feisty--
(growling)
as his bigger cousins.
(animal noises)
Oh man, what a day.
No muddy boots?
(tsks) Oh, man.
(groans)
(suspenseful music)
(door opens)
(chuckling)
(door closes)
(angelic music)
- [Mario] Is that the Brave Wilderness Adventure Kit?
- [Coyote] It is!
Oh, I gotta get it!
- [Mario] Wait, it's booby trapped!
- [Coyote] Oh, centipedes, bullet ants, legos?!
(grumbles) I'm going for it anyways!
(yelling in pain)
Why did it have to be legos?
(groaning in pain)
(panting) I made it!
All right, I've got a lizard in my pocket.
I'm gonna swap it out.
Here we go, ready?
One, two--
(sighs) Yes, I got it!
The Brave Wilderness Adventure Kit, yes!
All right, I'm comin' back!
(groaning in pain)
- [Mario] Toss it to me, I got it!
Toss it here, toss it!
(groaning in pain)
I've got it, toss it!
- [Coyote] No, I can't trust you, you're a bullet ant!
- [Mario] I've never failed you before, Coyote.
Come on, toss it to me!
- [Coyote] (groans) All right, here we go, ready?
One, two, three!
Now help me across!
- [Mario] Oh, yes!
(laughing maniacally)
I am the king of sting.
(animal noises)
- [Coyote] No!
(snoring)
- [Mario] Coyote, wake up!
Were you sleepin'?
- [Coyote] Oh, whoa!
Dude, I just had the craziest dream!
We were filming an episode, we came back,
my boots were all muddy, and we walked into the office.
It was like a scene out of Indiana Jones.
And the Brave Wilderness Adventure Kit was there!
And I was trying to get it, and there were bullet ants,
and centipedes and spider webs and--
And you were a bullet ant!
- [Mario] What?
- [Coyote] A bullet ant,
and you stole the Adventure Kit from me!
- [Mario] Uh, first of all, I would never do that to you.
But, dude, it was only a dream, don't worry.
(dramatic music)
(animal noises)
- Dragon season is just around the corner,
and if you are excited for more snapping turtle encounters,
make sure to go back and watch this episode
from our turtle adventures last year.
And don't forget, subscribe and click the notification bell
so you can join me and the crew on our next wild adventure!
(animal noises)