The District 10 Environment Committee in partnership with the Como Zoo
conducted a turtle study from May-August 2011 in Como Lake. The study
was two parts; a basking study where turtles were counted from shore,
and a trapping study where turtles were caught in traps. This is not a
count of all of the turtles in the lake but a start at determining the
species and number of turtles in the lake.
Painted and Snapping turtles were the only types of turtles found in
the lake. The basking study, where the turtle seen laying on rocks, or
downed trees or in the water, counted 2,052 Painted turtles and 47
Snapping turtles. The trapping study caught 118 Painted turtles, 32
Snapping turtles, and 407 fish (including an 18 inch Northern Pike). The
largest painted turtle was about 8 inches long and the biggest snapper
was about 17 inches long. The heaviest snapper was about 40 pounds (we
did not weigh the painteds).
The complete report is available in the PDF below.