Snapping turtles are quite shy and gentle in water, it's quite unlikely they would take a bite at anything in water except for the usual browsing of plant foliage. When taken out of a pond they will do a bit of huffing and puffing and put on a display of 'snapping' with a head lunge, though it's not particularly directed at anything.
Disturbed in water, snappers usual reaction is to scuttle the other way and hide, they can remain motionless and underwater for over an hour, so if you saw a snapper dive, don't expect to see it again if it doesn't want to be found
With a bit of coaxing they will bite on a stick usually without doing much damage, barely making an impression on quite soft wood. I'd be quite skeptical they could do much in the way of bodily harm, they might have quite wide mouths but they don't open that much. The sharp beak does act like a hook so it could be painful.... it would take a quite large snapper to even fit a finger in it's mouth, I'd guess their mouth barely makes a 30° aperture...
This year I've trapped snapping turtles up to 12" shell length from ponds where they pecked at the water lily baskets to destruction, so I got a chance to have quite a good look at them.... incredibly gentle in water, quite amusing when they start chasing you across the garden when they are out of the pond....
During Summer, turtles are the likely muncher of water lilies, the distinctive 'v' shaped beak is fairly obvious evidence.... during Winter, ducks are the likely culprits, they can tear and shred water lily crowns, leaving the water clouded and 'white' droppings in the water
Regards, andy
