To put it in perspective, that tub fits inside a half whiskey barrel. The turtle is about a foot long. I THOUGHT that only baby soft shells had the patterning on their carapace, and at this size, this is NOT a baby.
The large tail and bumps behind the head tell me its a male Florida, however the males don't show the patterning on the carapace. So maybe I'm all wrong about the type.
I got the call yesterday that some kids playing in the canal had found a pig nose turtle. I explained that pig nose turtles are pretty rare, and its probably a soft shell. The kids were walking along the bottom of the almost empty of water canal that runs by their apartment building and they saw a large rock. When they went to pick it up, it MOVED!! Scared the heck out of them.
Someone a few years ago probably bought the baby turtle and when it outgrew its 10 gallon tank decided to let it go. I guess it lived ok here because its sure a big thing. There are a few abrasions on the plastron, but it looks pretty healthy otherwise.
If you're in the Fresno/Clovis area and you want this big soft shell turtle, give me a call - 298-7114