Biologist creates ‘one-stop-shop’ to answer questions on Kansas alligator snapping turtles

TOPEKA (KSNT) – The Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks (KDWP) has launched a new section on its website dedicated to an aquatic species it plans to reintroduce to the state later this year.

27 News reached out to Aquatic Species Recovery Coordinator Trevor Starks with the KDWP to learn more about this new online resource for people to check out. He said the website is part of a larger outreach plan meant to inform the public about plans to reintroduce the alligator snapping turtle to Kansas.

Starks told 27 News in early June the KDWP is planning to bring the species back to Kansas after a more than 30-year absence in the state later this fall. This is part of the KDWP’s Aquatic Species Recovery Program which you can learn more about by clicking here.

“I wanted a one-stop-shop for anything and everything someone would want to know about this release, why we are doing it, and our contact information,” Starks said in a written statement. “Any other outreach efforts we conduct have and will link back to this webpage.”

The website contains basic factual information about alligator snapping turtles, explains the difference between the species and common snapping turtles and provides a timeline of conservation efforts for the species. Starks said there is a large amount of public interest in alligator snapping turtles and how they will impact local residents once they are reintroduced.

“As we suspected, we have received a lot of feedback,” Starks said in a written statement. “Part of that feedback was from KDWP employees who appreciated the webpage. Using this page, staff who may not be directly involved with releases or who get questions from the public can use this page as a resource. Because of this, we will be creating similar pages for each species we do releases on.”

Updates on reintroduction efforts and FAQ information pages on alligator snapping turtles can be found on the KDWP website by clicking here. A copy of the FAQ page on the KDWP website can be found below:

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