Incredible Discovery of Critically Endangered Batagur trivittata a Massive Success for Conservation
It was just an ordinary yearly Batagur egg search for Steven Platt and his colleagues in Myanmar, but little did they know what they would return with and the success that they would achieve. The prize of the day was 44 eggs from the Batagur trivittata. This species is critically endangered with fewer than five known females left in the wild; as a result, the ultimate survival of these turtles depends on the viability of these eggs. If they exhibit banding, scientists will confirm the viability of the clutch. Eggs have been discovered in previous years, but very few were uncovered, and they were not viable. Local villagers in Burma are assisting in guarding the clutch while it is under incubation, and education techniques have been employed to raise awareness for this critically endangered species. Upon a successful hatch, the neonates will be head-started and eventually released back into the wild.
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Conservation
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Biology
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Ecology
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Education
USA: School program to celebrate Gopher Tortoise Day
Health & Medical
USA: New residents at sea turtle rehabilitation center at South Padre Island
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Obituaries
USA: Discouraging news for rescued sea turtle
Miscellany
Africa: Toala to send representative to sea turtle symposium in Vegas
Species Facts…
The Burmese Mountain Tortoise (Manouria emys) is said to be the most intelligent of tortoises, and exhibit the remarkable behavior of carefully constructing and guarding a large nest mound. Interestingly, keepers report that the sub-species M. e. emys is more orientated towards their keepers than their counterpart, M. e. phayrei.
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Photo from Kalyar Platt.
