I read that you can have a florida snapper as a pet in ny where as you need a permit for our native ones. we can also have alligator snappers as I seen them in reptile shows. it doesn't seem to be any different than the northern ones and if it is smaller wouldn't that be because of competition from gators and gator snappers where as up here they are boss of the lake?
florida snappers are truly a different species?
- Thread starter syddakyd
- Start date
As far as I know, there's not much of a size difference between Chelydra serpentina & Chelydra osceola. Chelydras tend to have a wide range of sizes, just based on location, habitat, diet, etc.
I still don't know if Floridas are considered a separate species, or if they're a SUBspecies of common. I believe at one time they were considered a separate species, but that has since been changed IIRC. However, Central American snappers or Mexican snappers & South American snappers are still considered their own species (but they are rare in the pet trade and are insanely expensive).
The only way I know of telling a Florida from a common is by looking at the neck tubercles. Alligator snappers have relatively long appendages on their neck that help them take in oxygen from the water... Florida snappers and Mexican snappers have these as well, but the northern commons don't.
pretty sure they are just a different sub-species. When I was growing up it was Chelydra serpentina osceola and C.s. serpentina