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(Click on photo for larger image.)

Soft-shell turtle

FWC staff found this soft-shell turtle in a South Florida canal last year. This species of turtle can reach lengths of 2 feet.
(FWC photo by Kevin Enge)

FWC announces closed seasons on harvesting river cooters and soft-shell turtles

April 8, 2008
Contact: Patricia Behnke, 850-410-5291; cell 850-251-2130

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) has announced closed seasons for harvest of river cooters and their eggs from April 15 to July 31 and soft-shell turtles and their eggs from May 1 to July 31. During other times of the year, the river cooter is a protected species, with a daily bag limit of two turtles and two eggs.

Other protected species and their eggs in Florida include alligator snapping turtles, limit one turtle and one egg; loggerhead musk turtles, box turtles, Barbour’s map turtles, Escambia River map turtles and diamondback terrapins, all with a limit of two turtles and two eggs throughout the year. The Suwannee cooter, a subspecies of the river cooter, may not be taken or possessed at any time.

Soft-shell turtles, along with river cooters, are the most frequently harvested of all Florida turtle species.

“We will be strictly enforcing our harvesting regulations,” said Maj. Curtis Brown, with FWC law enforcement, “and monitoring the harvest of these species.”

To report any violations of freshwater turtle regulations or any other fish and wildlife law violations, call the Wildlife Alert Hotline at 888-404-FWCC (3922). For guidelines on freshwater turtle restrictions, visit MyFWC.com/codebook.     

 

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