Sea Turtle Herpes Virus a Concerning Issue Those terrible looking growths on the sea turtle’s body are actually tumors known as fibropapillomatosis. They are caused by a herpes virus that only affects turtles, and scientists are searching for answers on the cause of this dehabilitating disease. The tumors which affect the turtles cause them to be more susceptible to pathogens which further increase the fatality […]

Painted Gopherus polyphemus cleaned and returned to wild A Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) biologist responded to a call involving a gopher tortoise that had its shell covered in red paint. This case is disturbing because it is particularly difficult to witness blatant animal abuse. Along with her shell being covered in paint, the tortoise also had paint on her head and legs,

Ontario Does its Part to Conserve Native Species A clutch of Chelydra serpentina nearly met their end last fall had it not been for the Ontario Turtle Conservation Centre (OTCC). The eggs were laid on a Seneca’s King College campus bridge; however, the bridge was scheduled to be demolished, which would have meant certain death for the hatchlings. The OTCC collected the eggs for artificial

Guernsey Receives Tortoise From Durell for CT Scan George, a 46-year-old radiated tortoise, travelled from Jersey to Vets4Pets in St Martin’s to have a CT scan. Indeed, St Martin’s surgery is the only island in the Channel Islands with an animal CT scan. The 46-year-old radiated tortoise named George has been having issues with his front limb for a while and previous examination did not

Marines Clash With Desert Tortoises In Twentynine Palms, CA, in the middle of the Mojave Desert, marines from the U.S. Marine Corps undergo advanced combat training, while threatened Gopherus agassizzii meander along the sidelines; in fact, Desert Tortoises are native to the area and the U.S. Marine Corps runs an on-base hatchery to assist in conserving the species. However, tensions have risen over the the

TSA report: River Terrapins Hatch Throughout Asia Throughout Asia, from remote nesting beaches to captive breeding facilities, River Terrapins (genus Batagur) have recently completed their hatching season. The accounts below summarize information from the countries where TSA works on Batagur recovery programs including India, Myanmar, Bangladesh, and Indonesia. Burma hatchling BatagurThe River Terrapins (Batagur) comprise six species of large, impressive, and at least in some

State Law Keeps Gopher Tortoise Safe Over the last 10 years, the treatment of the Gopher Tortoise has changed a lot. Until 2007, land owners could apply for a “incidental-take” permit to simply entomb the animals in their own burrows. The Orlando Sentinel reported that 12,690 incidental-take permits were issued in 2006 and another 6,867 in 2007 before the law changed. Today in Florida Gopher

Another Conservation Success Story for a U.K. Zoo Did you know that there are approximately only 60 Cuora galbinifrons kept in zoos around the globe? One of these zoos is the Paignton Zoo Environmental Park in the U.K. Just recently this zoo successfully hatched two eggs from the galbinifrons, the second success since 2013. Paignton zoo currently keeps five mature adults, with one of the

Gladys Porter Zoo Hatches Galápagos Tortoise The Gladys Porter Zoo in Brownsville, Texas hatched a few Galápagos tortoise eggs last week. The Zoo is currently waiting for more eggs to hatch and are hoping to get some females in order to help sustain the species. “Until they’re ready (to leave the incubator), we keep them wrapped up to simulate being underground. They spend up to