Are terrapin turtles living in Somerset waterways?

A recent photo from a reader clearly shows a turtle sunbathing on a rock in the River Tone, which runs through Taunton.

Locals are confident that these once household pets have been swimming in the Bridgwater and Taunton Canal for decades.

A spokesperson for the UK Canal and River Trust confirmed this, and said: "There have been historic reports of terrapins in the Bridgwater & Taunton Canal, although no recent ones, and one of our operatives did once rescue a terrapin from the canal."The Canal and River Trust confirmed historic reports of terrapin turtles in the Bridgwater and Taunton Canal. (Image: Michelle Watts)

The Canal and River Trust also revealed terrapin turtles are present in many British waterways.

This is reportedly largely due to the 1980s craze for the 'tiny' swimming reptiles, which was bred by the popularity of the original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles TV show.

Many owners irresponsibly released their turtles into the wild upon realising they were too big and impractical to be kept as pets in most households.Many irresponsible turtle owners in the 1980s released their pets into the wild upon realising how big they can actually grow to be. (Image: Michelle Watts)

Sadly, terrapin turtles are ill-equipped to survive in the damp British climate, and feed on a huge range of food sources, which impacts on local, native wildlife.

"Terrapins don’t make ideal pets for most people as they are largely sedentary animals, require special conditions to thrive, and grow considerably in size during their lifetime," the Canal and River Trust confirmed.

"Unfortunately, this has led to their illegal release into many of the UK’s waterways where they are difficult to catch and remove."