Turtle taking off Friday

He's 150 years old.

But don't feel the need to rush and visit him for that reason.

"Crunch,"an endangered alligator snapping turtle, isn't expected to expire for maybe another 150 years.

But a quick visit is needed if someone wants to see him before he leaves Bismarck's Dakota Zoo to return home to an Indiana turtle refuge.

The 4-foot-long, 165-pound turtle has been on display for about a month here and will leave late Friday.

"Crunch"can be active, but "even when he's just sitting there, just sleeping, he's huge and impressive to watch,"said Terry Lincoln, zoo director.

He only eats about every two weeks, so he has had only one meal in Bismarck - nine pounds of catfish.

- Virginia Grantier