CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) — The large snapping turtle that became a viral video sensation may have been a pet.
It earned the nickname “Chonkosaurus” after kayakers Joey Santore and Al Scorch — of the Crime Pays but Botany Doesn't YouTube channel — spotted the reptile sunning itself in the north branch of the Chicago River near Division Street.
Richard Crowley, who was previously president of the Chicago Herpetological Society, said the turtle might have been a pet at one time. Snapping turtles, he said, can top 40 pounds if they have a steady food supply.
“They can get pretty good sized,” he said. “The one that was videoed [and] photographed looked a little bit on the overweight side, but they can actually reach pretty decent size proportions.”
Chonkosaurus’ size indicated to Crowley that it might have once been kept as a pet.
"They've been common in the pet trade for decades,” he said. “There's a lot of celebrities who share their ownership.”
The problem, Crowley said, is that some families who get turtles as pets don't understand that they have a lifespan similar to humans. Some turtles end up going to an animal rescue, while others are released into nature.
"I think when people are faced with not having a viable placement option they release them, unfortunately," Crowley said.
He acknowledged that they have seen “healthy-sized [turtles] coming out of the wild,” so long as they have a steady food supply.
In his now viral tweet, Santore said it was “great to see this beast thriving here on what was once such a toxic river but is slowly getting cleaned up and restored.” Santore told WBBM he thinks the turtle weighs 60 pounds.
In an interview with WBBM, Scorch said he thought Chonkosaurus probably ended up in the Chicago River after migrating its way naturally along the river systems in northern Illinois.
Regardless, it’s still unusual to see turtles so out in the open, said Chris Anchor, with the Forest Preserve District of Cook County.
“Generally, you don’t see turtles like this unless they’re coming out of hibernation and trying to warm up in the sun,” Anchor said. “That’s what I assume was going on with this turtle. Or they’re coming out of the water to lay eggs.
Anchor said improved water quality in the Chicago River could make sightings of animals like this one a bit more common. Anchor added that the turtle, which he estimated is somewhere between 40 and 50 years old, is not in danger.
Oh, and Anchor added that there’s no need for Chicagoans to feed Chonkosaurus if they’re lucky enough to spot it.
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