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Geriatric turtle sex only hope for world's rarest reptile
mongabay.com
May 21, 2008
With only four individuals of the Yangtze giant softshell turtle left on Earth—one in the wild and three in captivity—conservationists have launched a desperate attempt to save the species from extinction.
The Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and the Turtle Survival Alliance (TSA), working in conjunction with partners from two Chinese zoos and the China Zoo Society, have introduced an 80-year-old female turtle, living in China's Changsha Zoo, to the only known male in China, a more than 100-year-old living more than 600 miles away at the Suzhou Zoo.
"This is a story of hope for a species truly on the brink," said Colin Poole, Director of the Wildlife Conservation Society's Asia Programs. "We are extremely grateful to our conservation partners both in China and here in the U.S. who made this historic move possible. Now that the turtles are together, we are optimistic that they will successfully breed."
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Male (lower left corner) watches a basking female Yangtze giant softshell turtle. Sex between the 80-year-old female and the 100-year-old is the best hope for the survival of the species, say conservationists. Photo by Gerald Kuchling/TSA
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"I hate to call this a desperation move, but it really was. With only one female known worldwide, and given that we have lost three captive specimens over the past two years, what choice did we have? The risks related to moving her were certainly there, but doing nothing was much riskier," said Rick Hudson, TSA co-chair and Fort Worth Zoo conservation biologist.
The Yangtze giant softshell turtle is the world's most critically endangered turtle due to pollution, over-harvesting for food markets and habitat change.
Donations to help the turtle conservation effort are welcomed at turtlesurvival.org
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