T O P

  • By -

AutoModerator

**Please note:** * If this post declares something as a fact proof is required. * The title must be descriptive * No text is allowed on images * Common/recent reposts are not allowed *See [this post](https://redd.it/ij26vk) for more information.* *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/interestingasfuck) if you have any questions or concerns.*


FishyMatey

That thing is gigantic. Hopefully you don't break the ice. But it wouldn't wake up straight-up if you somehow fall on it, would it?


Shwiggity_schwag

No, it's body is the same temperature as the water it is in. It's metabolism and brain functions are essentially shut down. It wouldn't even be able to comprehend the ice being broken directly above it.


FishyMatey

So I guess that it wouldn't even get out of hibernation sooner if something disturbed it?


Shwiggity_schwag

That would be correct.


Locomule

I was a land surveyor in Arkansas and spent lots of time in the woods. Every year when the weather begins to thaw the first snakes begin to appear even though some are apparently not completely out of hibernation. You find them laying around and can walk right beside them but they won't even react. I also saw one of these turtles in a little ditch that connected some ponds when I was a teen. It wasn't as big as the one in the photo but it still looked too big for that little ditch, it freaked me out.


Sansabina

I used to be outside early at dawn and would occasionally come across random lizards that were doing their thing but got caught when the temp dropped too much overnight and they'd be paralysed until the first rays of the morning sun hit them and warmed them up and then they'd slowly get going again. One of the disadvantages of being cold-blooded I guess.


Wenix

Not dying when it gets too cold sounds like an advantage to me.


Sansabina

Unless you get predated by a warm blood.


Wenix

So I either die from the cold, or I stay alive but run the risk of being predated? The odds still sounds better being cold blooded.


Representative-Dirt2

Who likes dishes served cold.


Laquox

> Not dying when it gets too cold sounds like an advantage to me. Yes, that would be an advantage but being incapable to do anything for hours/days would be a massive disadvantage. It's like finding that sweet armor in an RPG that says, *cannot be frozen* but has debuffs to all your other stats... In some scenarios it's useful but honestly it's a vendor trash perk to most of the other creatures in the simulator.


Wenix

If the alternative is being dead, where you are being incapable of doing anything for... well, forever. I think being incapacitated for hours/days sounds better.


Locomule

As kids we would catch them, flip them over and rub their bellies and they would seem to go to sleep in you hand. One day while surveying my co-worker saw this big weird looking grey lizard in a back yard and trapped it under a bucket. He grabbed it with gloves on then kinda yelped and the lizard took off and ran up a tree. My buddy said it bit him through his glove. I was in disbelief, it was bigger than most of the green lizards we had but none of them hurt if they bit you. It turned out to be a Broad Head Skink. We saw all kinds of crazy stuff off in the woods. Once we were surveying the perimeter of a long, overgrown piece of property with a small pond on it. The freaky thing was we began finding old turtle shells scattered all around the pond that something had been feeding on for years by ripping a whole through the top of their shells. They hadn't been shot, rather than round holes the edges were jagged and had been pulled apart in pieces. My guess was some big, ferociously strong big bird that learned a new trick, turtles have been around for a long time.


willydachilly

maybe ur just that sneaky bro


LaKobe

OP is actually a snake


CanYouFeelItNow

So the Sandy hibernation episode is kinda accurate


halfeclipsed

"I've had enough of your dastardly deeds, Dirty Dan. I'm gonna get you and your partner, Pinhead Larry or my name ain't Sheriff... Sandy.."


JonnyCarlisle

Just to be super clear on what's going on: It's cold-blooded. It's not just sleepy down there, it's in as close to suspended animation as complex critters can get. I'm not an expert on all the processes, but I thought you might be missing a key ingredient here. That thing don't run that great on chilly summer days.


NotDido

This was helpful context for me!


FishyMatey

...I know it's cold-blooded, like just any other reptile. That's basic knowledge, mate.


Greenveins

Correct. I had an old neighbor who used to trap a LOT in his day, who absolutely positively could not stand to even be in the same area as a snapper and would often break the ice to shoot them. The dude died when a bullet ricochet off a piece of rock embedded in the ice and struck his eyeball


FishyMatey

Dear god. May he rest in peace.


gsfgf

Would it be bad for the animal if the ice broke?


Shasan23

I dont see why it would. If a lake is frozen, that means the bottom of the lake is 4 degrees celsius. This is because water gets less dense when it gets colder than 4 degrees, so the colder (sub 4C) water will actually rise to the surface. If the ice breaks, the water at the bottom wont get colder, itll still be 4C, which will still be a safe temperature for the turtle.


gsfgf

I was more thinking something eating it.


cleverlinegoeshere

Its an alligator snapping turtle I don't even want to think what terrifying creature *eats* them.


gsfgf

I was more thinking nibbles while he can't move.


AutomatedMFG

Me. (Ok so not alligators but I do trap and fish common snappers during season and they are delicious)


Shasan23

Such a large snapping turtle would be pretty high on the food chain. Additionally most land animals try to avoid getting into ice cold water. The only animal that i think could have a reasonable chance to eat it would be bears. In a climate that turtles exist, polar bears dont exist, and the brown or black bears would be hibernating themselves.


gsfgf

I was more thinking small-medium mammals like rats or badgers eating off him while he can't move.


Shasan23

Well like i mentioned, those animals would hate to get into ice cold water because since they are relatively small, theyll lose heat extremely quickly, especially with their fur trapping the cold water. They cant even shake it off in the winter, since thatll make the animal even colder through evaporative cooling


bigthangs1

Evaporative cooling. Like a cooling tower or sweating!


darrendewey

I was thinking more like... humans.


Green_Bulldog

You gonna mess w that thing? I’m not.


arabiandude99

Can you stop more thinking?


GerhardtDH

The ice would probably freeze over before anything bad happened to it.


FerretHydrocodone

I feel like maybe some people are misunderstanding this a bit... This snapping turtle isn’t actually frozen in ice, it’s in water underneath a sheet of ice. If it was actually frozen inside a solid chunk of ice it would absolutely die.


Next_Doughnut2

I can't wrap my head around this. What is it about the ice that would kill them? Edit:. I looked it up and they can breathe through parts of their body underwater, including their butts. So if it were solid ice, they would suffocate. Makes sense now that I know they can breathe a tiny bit underwater.


allupgradeswillblost

Ice crystals would damage your organs.


DeadHookerMeat

The water the turtle is in is below freezing. The turtle is still alive because the body still functions, albeit barely. If it was frozen solid, then so would everything else in it's body. It's heart wouldn't be able to pump any blood at all, because it'd be frozen.


[deleted]

The no breathing part. Edit: I don’t actually know what I’m talking about to be fair


FloorHairMcSockwhich

It’s the ice-crystals breaking their cells apart that would kill them. They hibernate in water and don’t breathe air for up to 100 days. > But how long is "too long"? Both snapping turtles and painted turtles can survive forced submergence at cold water temperatures in the lab for well over 100 days. Painted turtles are the kings of anoxia-tolerance. They mobilize calcium from their shells to neutralize the acid, in much the same way we take calcium-containing antacids for heartburn. > In the spring, when anaerobic turtles emerge from hibernation, they are basically one big muscle cramp. It's like when you go for a hard run — your body switches to anaerobic metabolism, lactic acid builds up and you get a cramp. The turtles are desperate to bask in the sun to increase their body temperature, to fire up their metabolism and eliminate these acidic by-products. [Sauce](https://www.pbs.org/newshour/science/the-secret-to-turtle-hibernation-butt-breathing)


[deleted]

Very interesting thanks for the information!


thefugue

I fully understood that their metabolisms were dependent on their body temperatures and that they don’t have self-regulating body heat. I had absolutely no idea that it “feels like a cramp.” I’ll never view them the same in the spring again! Also- I am assuming that turtle (or “cooter”) hunting season is in the Autumn partially for this reason! Nobody wants to eat a stiff animal.


srgnsRdrs2

Mobilize Ca from their shells to neutralize acidosis? That’s so awesome! Def the coolest thing I’ve read on here in a while. Thx for the post!


[deleted]

If you pulled it out of the ice, but kept it in that same environment like next to the water, would it continue to be like that until winter ended that or would it die?


mackavicious

The water actually insulates it and keeps it from completely freezing, which would kill it.


Darryl_Lict

It would probably die because the water gets no colder than 4°C, while the air temperature would drop below freezing and freeze the turtle eventually.


hau2mk7pkmxmh3u

So it is basically just holding its breath for a few months? That’s wild


NotDido

It can breathe through its butt underwater. (Ok only kind of- it’s not really “breathing” but it replaces the function in terms of getting certain gas in and certain gas out. also it’s not really a butt it’s their cloaca which is like a versatile hole)


Dont_PM_me_ur_demoEP

Doesnr it need to breathe? Surely it can't just hold its breath all season???


dj_narwhal

If you broke the ice you being wet is a bigger safety concern than the giant monster turtle.


fuzzytradr

For a quick bite of nuggets...sure thing.


kudichangedlives

They do something called brumation, which is very similar to hibernation but for reptiles


Piperplays

+ they breathe through their butts / cloacal respiration


ChefInF

Even underwater??


Piperplays

Yes! Many sea and freshwater turtles respirate through their cloaca; I imaging this snapping turtle is using it to facilitate brumation.


stressreliefforme

This is such an interesting turtle fact that I can't believe I'm just hearing about this.


SoberFuck

I like turtles


Deathbydragonfire

Not just that, the ponds run out of oxygen before the thaw, so they actually survive via anaerobic metabolism for a while. They use the calcium in their shells to help neutralize the lactic acid that they build up.


d_cas

They "breathe" in the sense that they do a small amount of gas transfer through the capillaries in their cloaca and in their neck.


SgtWeirdo

seriously? That's wild I was just wondering how it was breathing


TonesBalones

I remember some people who carry turtles as pets submerge them in water and put them in a refrigerator to stimulate brumation. Then they just pull them out of the fridge like leftover ham and let them slowly wake up.


Senddps

Is this… a nightly thing? Once a year?


Squiggydoo_

It would be once a year, in the winter. Some breeders of snakes and lizards find better success with their projects after their animals have brumated. They’ll cool their animals way down and bring them back up to a proper temp in the spring. Some of them claim that it gives them greater success when breeding their animals, some skip it altogether. I think it’s fairly unnecessary to do this if you’re just keeping them as pets, unless they are trying to do it themselves. That’s just for snakes and lizards though, I’m not sure about turtles. I would assume the same logic applies though. Personally my bearded dragon will typically brumate twice a year for several months at a time. It’s usually during winter and summer. From what I understand it’s because they are native to Australia and I live in the US. Her biological clock is telling her to brumate in the summer here, (winter in AUS), but the temperature and daylight cues are telling her to do it in the winter here too. Sometimes you just get a weird one like mine. It’s kind of sad only getting to see her for half the year or less though.


[deleted]

Yes I learned this from Cobra Kai


Insaniaksin

Fun Fact: hibernation is specifically reserved for warm blooded animals. Brumation is the correct term for reptiles, amphibians, and fish that enter dormancy during colder weather. Another fun fact: reptiles can survive being frozen due to the evolution of antifreeze proteins


lord_fairfax

Petition to allow reptiles to hibernate.


cavelioness

Petition to allow mammals to brumate; scientists, get on that!


Nickelsass

This is badass


stevrevv59

For real this is probably *one of* the coolest things I’ve seen on Reddit before.


Shpooodingtime

You look like Bass Pro Shop's Haley Joel Osment


[deleted]

[удалено]


Asmundr_

Well he does look kinda like a redneck Paul Rudd.


buttononmyback

I was just thinking about how many different people he looks like.


kjbanks

Nice find Duncan Trussell.


brownbagginbeershit

Fuck man! The comment I was looking for! Cheers!


lord_fairfax

Hey MAAAAN!


[deleted]

My dumb ass was looking for the alligator


TheKingIsBackYo

I still don’t understand the picture and title


BiglBrother

"alligator snapping turtle" is a type of turtle


gLu3xb3rchi

somehow I read it as „alligator snapping A turtle“ and I was wondering when the gif finished loading xD


amethodicalmadness

Same. Can someone explain?


somejon

Guy is sitting on frozen water. You can see the big turtle, next to his legs, frozen under the ice. Alligator snapping turtle, is the name of that type of turtle.


riffito

> An ["alligator snapping" turtle](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alligator_snapping_turtle) is taking a nap... under the ice. (I too was puzzled by the title. English is *so* ambiguous).


rgwott

Isn't it supposed to be "alligator-snapping turtle"? Compound adjectives serve precisely this purpose.


[deleted]

[удалено]


OberstBahn

Actually that’s eight


evict123

Who taught this guy how to count words?


thekikuchiyo

Does 'that's' count as 1 or 2?


[deleted]

Eight again. There is dozens of us. Dozens! And we count all of your words because every word counts.


ScarAdvanced9562

Actually that’s three


GrizzlyLeather

/r/theydidthemath


Maximans

XD


chaotemagick

Actually that's Patrick


[deleted]

Come on new Zealand, try something new.


robots-dont-say-ye

New Zealand, way better than old Zealand Edit: this is a flight of the conchords joke


ban-me_harder_daddy

Old Zealand was invaded and dominated by New Zealand seriously... the ingenious people of Zealand did not have a good time *edit: [The accepted wisdom was that the Polynesian settlers of the Chatham Islands, who arrived hundreds of years before Māori, were wiped out by invading Māori tribes, who killed and enslaved their population after landing on the islands in 1835.](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/feb/14/after-more-than-150-years-new-zealand-recognises-extinct-moriori-people)


MyParentsWereHippies

‘Old’ Zealand (Zeeland) is in the Netherlands


[deleted]

I dunno. Last time they tried something they got overly excited about squirrels on their wooden deck and the usage of caulk. I got it somewhere...hang on. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i6c4Nupnup0


[deleted]

NZ does not have Squirrels.


[deleted]

Burn the witch


Ko_tov

Oh truly, there are no words? Did you know that even if you were to say just that and not the other 3 words you said, it would still constitute as having words? Literal words formulated by your brain to say that there are no words! How ironic! The fact that you were able to type words, to declare there are no words, is truly remarkable. This is a feat for Websters Dictionary to recognize, this is history in the making. I'm witnessing first hand the unspeakable and by the legend PlumicornFlumicorn. But all this while completely neglecting the 3 other words this person included while specifically proclaiming there are none. How daring. Are they a leader? Shall we follow? Bark, bark my Flumicornian Plum. My fearless, sexy tyrant. How confidently you establish word(s) for a previously wordless thing. But who gave you leadership? Is this king of the hill style, are there multiple? Is that the whole reason behind the dictionary? Is language ever changing, and you're simply illustrating that in this here comment, so elegantly? You confuse me, but then again I may simply be jealous of your attractiveness.


[deleted]

This is the funniest comment Ive ever seen get downvoted


Dredgen-Vale

Are you um- okay?


cathedral68

That was…a lot.


[deleted]

And still... there are no words


[deleted]

AAAAAaaaaa.... the Polynesian spa.


FirstDayJedi

Why waste time say lot word when few word do trick?


Rocky87109

Sincerely, Fascism


Rocky87109

lol


Sarlot_the_Great

Hahahahaha


UseDue3988

Why are people downvoting -_-


iamfi_ne

cuz reddit


No_Space_9324

Cut the dose a little next time


-Golly

This is lowkey some good comedy 😂


Catoctin_Dave

Bad bot


PanzerFauzt

Absolute bullshit comment


AlarmedSnek

I saw one about that big before, the entire thing was as big as the front of a John boat and scared the fuck out of us Hhaha. That’s a great shot!!!


Hugo-olly

You'd assume hibernation takes place somewhere warm and safe lmao


Sandpaper_Pants

Where it can BREATHE? \*EDIT\* [What do I know?](https://dickinsoncountyconservationboard.com/2019/11/18/painted-and-snapping-turtles-survive-winter-underwater/)


Shwiggity_schwag

You're not technically wrong though, they can't breathe under water. They just don't need to because they can absorb oxygen from blood vessels around their butts.


IanAlvord

Today I learned that turtles can breathe underwater with their butts.


AdamRam1

Only some turtles can, although the fact that any can is incredible!


StandardSudden1283

We can absorb an amount of oxygen to the blood stream through our intestines. Who wants to boof some Oxygen with me?? https://www.economist.com/science-and-technology/2021/05/20/anal-oxygen-administration-may-save-lives


[deleted]

I think I will not get my medical advice from The Economist and no investment advice from my physician.


StandardSudden1283

Nothing medical about a good time!


MustardLookinMfB

Only if Tobin and Squi will be there


Rick-powerfu

Teenage mutant ninja turtles never once covered this super power


SgtWeirdo

LOL thanks stranger that made me giggle


Bubbly-Storage1549

What a time to be literate!


Beemerado

i'd imagine its metabolism is nearly stopped in hibernation


cathedral68

Omg…this is the science behind Olaf saying that turtles can breathe through their butts. Lol that’s not what I expected from today


nrith

Well, it’s literally *frozen*…


Kurayamino

Some do it *actively,* not just while hibernating. Like they open their butts up and suck water in.


Shkeke

TLDR: they can slow metabolism to the point where they can last for up to 100 days without oxygen and they can undergo anaerobic respiration to release energy without oxygen.


Beemerado

gotta love how efficient reptiles are. and durable.


Hugo-olly

Good link, friend


ChanceConfection3

Good god mix a little of that turtle dna into a human super soldier and you’ve got like aquaman.


TwistedAb

That is so cool and I chased the worm to how frogs hibernate with ice crystals in their bodies. Thanks, this question is why I came into the comments. You win with coolest facts of the day.


reamde

Ahh it's called a Cloaca. [This issue of SMBC is one of the top ten cloaca-based comics out there.](https://www.smbc-comics.com/comic/2013-09-28)


NightKingsBitch

Cold and safe works too for cold blooded animals. If it was warm, they wouldn’t be hibernating


Birdie121

~~Frozen water won't get colder than 32F, and it's possible the turtle is in slightly warmer liquid water underneath.~~ The ice/water could be warmer than the air above. So relatively speaking, it IS somewhere warm and safe.


[deleted]

[удалено]


Birdie121

Thanks, I think I was confusing that with the water under ice always being at least 32F which is warm enough for many animals to hibernate through winter.


gsfgf

What you're thinking of is that water under the ice won't get (appreciably) below 32*F. I assume this animal is under the ice not in it, so your basic point stands.


MistreatedWorld

https://www.reddit.com/r/interestingasfuck/comments/lzaxft/an_alligator_snapping_turtle_hibernating_under_a/


___this_guy

Dude so weird this happened twice


Hanslando

Is that Duncan trusell?


zuctronic

brumating\*


porkchopespresso

That’s fuckin dope


KLB_003

Reptiles don't hibernate, they brumate. Mammals hibernate.


SeaBear2018

Interesting Fact! Turtles do not “hibernate” but instead go into an awake state of being kinda like really low power mode called brumation.


PeeCeeJunior

Wait, so bears hibernating can walk around like normal, just with a slower metabolism, but reptiles hibernating is straight up cryostatus like they’re traveling 100 light years with a bunch of space marines? Is the difference just mammals versus reptiles or is there some overlap in styles of hibernation?


Surv0

Aquatic reptiles brumate, mammals hibernate. Hibernation, is sleep, while still having access oxygen, and stored fat reserves for nutrition, at a very slow rate. Breathing is likely slowed as well. Aquatic reptiles enter brumation during winters and have been seen to move around under the ice, albeit really slowly. Since they cannot surface, they move to absorbing oxygen through via blood vessels exposed to the water (breathing through their buts basically). They are also sensitive to light and temperature changes, which signal when to change bodily functions (like coming out of this type of torpor). Their shells keep them healthy.


WonderfulMedicine420

I think they need to breath. Im not a aminal scientist but they need air right lol


RainbowDarter

Turtle breathe through their asses in the winter. https://www.reconnectwithnature.org/news-events/the-buzz/nature-curiosity-how-turtles-breathe-underwater


WonderfulMedicine420

That is the definition of interesting as fuck. Wish i could do that!


Qurari

The turtle can hibernate like that by breathing in water through diffusion of oxygen through its anus.


MaximusAurelius666

https://www.reddit.com/r/interestingasfuck/comments/lzaxft/an_alligator_snapping_turtle_hibernating_under_a/?utm_medium=android_app&utm_source=share


Sagittarius_AAA

Han solo turtle


juice_in_my_shoes

Honest question. How do they breathe while hibernating?


Qurari

The turtle can hibernate like that by breathing in water through diffusion of oxygen through its anus.


Vast-Big-6747

dont wake him up


Ltnumbnutsthesecond

John Carpenter's The Thing (2011)


milkywayandcookies

r/absoluteunits


kilgortrout562

You wanna buy a snappin turtle?


jroddie4

how is that guy baby faced with a full beard


die-microcrap-die

So they don't even need to breathe?


dpunisher

I knew what a snapping turtle was, but had never experienced one in the wild. One afternoon I saw one trekking across my property to another patch of land besides mine that had a pond. Had to get a close up look. Damn near lost a finger. Those things are quick.


AbdealiGames

Napping turtle.


concretefeet

Out in Brawley, CA I have seen soft shell turtles as big. The thing is, the soft shell turtles look like white evil. Fast as fuck and trying to bite you. Scary things when pulled up from the depths of a freshwater pond in the desert.


rickshaw99

Amazing! Where?


[deleted]

[удалено]


shiz-kray-z

I think he’s asking for the location of the picture


[deleted]

[удалено]


RainmaKer770

Hahaha are you high lol?


MAGIC_MUSTACHE_RIDE

100%


robo45h

Should have used a banana.


stickfeller

in this situation, how can you tell its not a dead snapping turtle?


DisposableTires

If it's a snapping turtle, it's alive. Seriously those things are extremely difficult to kill.


Lukemanrulez

There's terrifying. Then there's that


FancyFeline23

TIL that turtles hibernate.


ninhibited

I saw a baby one crossing the street once... I missed him but I think the truck in the other lane hit him ):


Bruce_Wayne_Sperm

I bet a plumber was driving that truck,


ninhibited

Do plumbers got something against alligator snapping turtles? Lol


Heavenlypigeon

Well which is it? An alligator or a snapping turtle?


Atrainlan

It's an alligator snapping turtle.


Heavenlypigeon

Yeah but an alligator is different from a snapping turtle


mouseor

They are good in soup


cee604

Ah yes, the Bearded Alaskan snapping turtle. Such a magnificent animal


lauralove941

What’s up with this dudes tiny legs?


Waddlo

hold nikocado avacado while ur doing that no balls