Mississippi monster caught in Solihull in the UK

When fisherman Drew Hammonds saw a spiky armour-plated creature at the end of his line, he made a snap decision.

He dropped his rod and started to run. But after a quick look back he realised he had landed a snapping turtle.

And being so far from its native U.S., it was very snappy indeed.



Mr Hammonds, 37, caught the turtle early last Tuesday while fishing with friends at Earlswood Lake near Birmingham. He said: ‘It was hissing and spitting when we caught it - it was really vicious. You couldn’t go anywhere near it without it going for you.

‘It ripped through my net and my friend’s net.’ Worried that the turtle was hurt, the men tried to remove the hook in its mouth before putting it back in the water.'

Turtle specialist Paul Eversfield identifiedthe creature as an alligator snapping turtle (macroclemys temminckii). Mr Eversfield, from the British Chelonia Society, said the turtles were native to the southern states of the U.S.

With more photos.