Cambodian Royal Turtle nearly extinct _ less than 10 in wild
Daily Mail | 25 April 2016
PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) — Cambodia's
Royal Turtle is nearly extinct, with fewer than 10 left in the wild,
because increased sand dredging and illegal clearance of flooded forest
have shrunk its habitat, a conservationist group warned Monday.
The
New York-based Wildlife Conservation Society said in a statement that
for several years the small remaining population of Royal Turtles,
"perhaps numbering fewer than 10,' have been successfully protected in
the Sre Ambel river system by a joint project of the government's
Fishery Administration and WCS.
But
a recent increase in disturbance along the river system in Koh Kong
province, the only place the turtle is still found in Cambodia, is
putting the species at great risk, it said.
In this June 24, 2015, photo released by
Wildlife Conservation Society, a Cambodian Royal Turtle walks on the
sand of Sre Ambel river bank, in Koh Kong province, in western Phnom
Penh, Cambodia. Cambodia's Royal Turtle is nearly extinct, with fewer
than 10 left in the wild, because increased sand dredging and illegal
clearance of flooded forest have shrunk its habitat, a conservationist
group warned Monday, April 25, 2016. (Wildlife Conservation Society via
AP) MANDATORY CREDIT, NO SALES
This
year the project team observed a decline in the turtle's nesting. "We
believe this is caused by increased sand dredging, wood transportation
along the nesting habitat, and illegal clearance of flooded forest
disturbing the females during the breeding season", said In Hul, the
project coordinator.
Only
one nest was located this year, compared to four last year. "This is
very worrying and if it continues it will be potentially putting the
species at high risk of extinction," he said.
The
Royal Turtle was believed extinct in Cambodia until 2000 when a small
population was re-discovered. In 2001, the government and WCS began a
project to search for and protect nests. They have saved 39 nests with a
total of 564 eggs that resulted in 382 hatchlings. Although the
hatchlings are taken into captivity to be raised and released into the
wild later, the loss of habitat reduces their chances to survive,
officials say.
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