by Alex Steelsmith

“Huge prehistoric-looking creature spotted in California lake… [is the] alligator snapping turtle,
[which] can reach up to 175 pounds… ‘They’ll eat anything… If you put your foot in front of it, it will bite you’…
They’ve been known to bite the legs off birds floating in the water.”
—The Sacramento Bee

Haplessly, hopelessly,
peaceable waterbirds
don’t stand a chance against
snappers who sup,

though with their obvious
vulnerabilities
everyone wants them to
have a leg up.

Frustrated, flustrated,
petrified bird lovers
don’t take a stand, though they
hardly approve.

No one can blame them for
pusillanimity;
putting one’s foot down is
not a good move.