tortoise news

Couple brought together, kept apart by their love for turtles Terrapins brought Dr Chen Pelf Nyok, well known among villagers in Kampung Pasir Gajah as “Mek Tuntung”, and her husband Dylan Wang whom locals call “Along Dolloh”, together, and their love for the reptiles led them to tie the knot early last year. But their love for the turtles also kept them apart for months […]

World’s most heavily trafficked turtle plays vital role in Indonesia environment, economy The Southeast Asian box turtle is the most heavily trafficked turtle in the world – captured and sold to China for food and medicine and for the pet trade in the United States, Japan and Europe. But little was known about its ecology until a University of Rhode Island herpetologist spent six months

Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) seizes 3,300 pig-nosed turtles (Carettochelys insculpta) from smugglers The carettochelys insculpta, commonly known as the pig-nosed turtle, is listed as Vulnerable on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List. The freshwater reptile is restricted to the Northern Territories of Australia and the southern lowlands of New Guinea. Despite the legal protection, the turtles are in high demand

Sea Isle Road Gets “Turtle Exclusion Fencing” Why did the turtle cross the road? What may sound like the opening line of a corny joke actually raises a serious issue at the Jersey Shore. Each summer, legions of diamondback terrapins emerge from the marshlands in search of dry sand or soil in which to lay their eggs. This ritual often sees them cross over local

Texas turtles are dying and state officials don’t know why Dozens of turtles across Texas have been found dead or dying in the past four months and experts don’t know why. Since Texas Parks and Wildlife staff first noticed the occurrences in November, they’ve documented about 60 deaths among four different species of freshwater turtles in Fort Worth, Houston and Jasper, department spokeswoman Aubry Buzek

In Bethlehem, New Zealand, the red-eared slider is a blacklisted species This week, a scientist, a bio-security officer and two renowned conservationists stand on a dusty, sun baked track in a suburban Tauranga backwater. They’re earnestly discussing a potential environmental calamity. And Goldilocks. That’s Goldilocks of 19th century fairytale fame who doesn’t like her porridge too hot, nor too cold, but just right. But this

Giant tortoise believed extinct for 100 years found in Galapagos According to Galapagos Conservancy, the only known specimen of Chelonoidis phantasticus, commonly known as Fernandina Island tortoise, “was collected during the California Academy of Sciences expedition in April 1906”. “While thought to be extinct due to volcanic eruptions in past centuries, there have been anecdotal observations indicating that there may indeed still be a very

Turtle With Rare Genetic Condition Adopted by Suburban Ecologist A special Blanding’s turtle who called Chicago home has moved out to the suburbs, where she’s helping to spread the word about the plight of her endangered species throughout Illinois. Lucy, as she was named originally, arrived at Chicago’s Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum in August 2017 as a week-old hatchling. Although most Blanding’s turtles are dark

Native freshwater turtle populations face extinction in South Australia, scientists call for action A new scientific study has found native freshwater turtles are on the brink of extinction in South Australia, a concern predicted 30 years ago but little action has been taken since. First published in the Scientific Reports in Nature journal, the researchers said rapid action was needed for conservation to be effective