AVERILL PARK, N.Y. (NEWS10) — A nearly 70-year-old injured snapping turtle has passed away at a Massachusetts rescue after being saved from Methodist Farm Road in Averill Park on Tuesday. The Rensselaer County Sheriff’s Office said the turtle, who was named Sarge, may have been hit by a car overnight .
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Albany County Sheriff Craig Apple spotted Sarge and called Rensselaer County Sheriff Kyle Bourgault for assistance. Once three deputies arrived, Sarge was loaded into the bed of a pickup truck and transported to Tracy Zustra, a wildlife rehabilitator with Berkshire County Turtle Rescue. Zustra shared Sarge’s passing in a social media post on Wednesday morning, saying he survived seven decades of changes in the world, only to be taken out by a car.
“To see law enforcement go so far out of their way to protect and care for our native wildlife means the world,” the social media post read. “It takes a community to protect these animals, and their kindness is something I won’t forget.”
Deputies said it’s the time of year when turtles move more frequently, and motorists are encouraged to help them cross in the direction they’re traveling. Additionally, based on Sarge’s injuries, it’s likely a car straddled over the top of him.
“When turtles become frightened, they instinctively tighten up and pull inward, which can actually make them stand slightly taller,” a social media post from the Rensselaer County Sheriff’s Office said. “Unfortunately, this can place them directly in the path of a vehicle’s undercarriage — even when drivers think they have safely cleared them.”…