i have been fishing in a lake in mo. for better of fifteen years and it haas been overran with turttles, i have caught about 20 and removed them or eat the( very good) this year have not seen any bigs(cat) just some yellow belly ( bull head) and a few 4 pound channel.....how i have been catching the turtles is just letting them eat the hook, i've caught a few that wouldn't fit into a five gallon bucket...is there a faster wey to catch alot, or maybe a natural predator i can introduce????? most of the turtles have been snappers, a few red ear.....

First of all, welcome to the forum! The problem with turtles is that they have few natural predators, and I'm pretty sure that introducing a foreign species to a lake is illegal in Missouri and not to mention just irresponsible, good idea to ask about it before doing so, then. My best advice for getting rid of them is continue catching them, maybe inviting a few friends to improve catch rates, and having a huge turtle soup banquet.

i wasent thinking of foriegn speceices i was thinking otter....or something local...

The thing is that some species do very well in one lake and can wreak havoc in other lakes, it's a bit unpredictable. I would ask someone more well versed in Missouri law like another resident or someone at the local town hall before transplanting a species even from a nearby lake to the lake where you fish. Also, I saw on the Missouri department of conservation website that it is legal to hunt snapping turtles with a bow and arrow. (just a suggestion, but it sounds like a lot of fun!)

Hard to beat turtle soup!  But as previously sited, a little turtle soup goes a long way.  Gators are a good predator for turtles but they create quite a legal problem.  If you are fortunate enough to have gators let mother nature take care of it, but it sounds like she may need a little help.  With the economy like it is you might open a little turtle soup kitchen.  I built a three foot trap out of 4 inch PVC pipe.  Put a wire rail around the top which could be accessed by folding treated 1" x 6 "
boards and wire basket around the bottom attached to PVC.  When you place the trap in the water drop down boards so turtles can climb in trap.  They will come up to sun and when something startles them they fall off into bottom and are trapped until you release them.  I added a little hardware cloth to top of ramp boards to give them more traction.  MAKE SURE THE TRAPPING OF TURTLES IS LEGAL IN YOUR AREA!  Discovered there were alligator snapping turtles in my pond which were on the endangered species list.  How lucky can you get?  If you need any help with the trap touch base with me and I will be glad to help.  They are not hard to build.  If I learn how to put pictures on this post I will include one later.  Uncle Tom I liked the idea of inviting a number of friends over.

like uncle tom said make sure of what kind of turtle it is alligator snapping turtles are on the endangered species list and it is a hefty fine in missouri to kill or posess one[script removed]

thank you uncle tom,, i tried  a cheesy trap containing a dog carrier but it did not work well, so i think you'r idea is awesome..... and yes it is against the law to trap alligator turtles... ? know the difference... alligator snappers have three humps on their backs ( that's the only sign i look for)....the only ones i have seen are red ear and logger head.....wellp found good fishin hole for the kids, lil pond full of sun fish,,,, couldn't keep the their poles bated i recommend holes like this, they get tierd of waiting for you to bait the hook, so they get some exp. putin on the worm them selfs, all tho the down fall is they get to thinking this the way it should be all the time...next time we go will bring bacon stays on alittle longer...... my son 14, dught 12, other dot 9...and that was in about 45 mins...wow!!!!! have fun fishin fella's i know i will....next week the mississippi....

Caught my share of turtles, but never considered them a nuisence. I used to watch bass at mouth of dried up creek eat them by the thousands as they (baby snappers) migrated down creek bed. Sounds like scratch...scratch...scratch as they paddle on sand and gravel. In New York this would be anywhere from May to early July w/early June being the norm.

Sharon, you consider turtles a nuisance? I think it would be beautiful to see a bunch of baby turtles making their way toward their creek or river - it may interfere with your fishing, but every bit of nature has a thing of beauty about it. Maybe next time you should sit back and observe nature in motion. I'm sure you'll find it very relaxing and you might even learn something. J Stratton out.

She said, never...a nuisance.

LOL's