Two turtles found in Vietnam are listed among 10 of the world's most threatened freshwater species by Conservation International.
The Red River giant softshell turtle and the Annam pond turtle are included in the list compiled by Dr Peter Paul van Dijk, director of CI's Tortoise and Freshwater Turtle Conservation Program.
A new study undertaken for World Water Week says more than 40 percent of the world’s estimated 280 freshwater turtle species are facing extinction, making them among the most threatened groups of animals on the planet.
CI blamed it on habitat loss, hunting for food, and a lucrative pet trade.
With only four individuals remaining alive anywhere in the world, the Red River giant softshell turtle (Rafetus swinhoei) may be the most threatened of all turtles.
Two animals held in captivity for a long time in China were brought together three years ago to produce eggs, but they failed to hatch.
One lone reptile in Hoan Kiem lake in downtown Hanoi is revered as a symbol of Vietnam's independence.
The last animal remaining in the wild – also in Vietnam – escaped death when the reservoir where it lives burst in November 2008, washing it downriver. The turtle was caught by a fisherman who only released him after protracted negotiations with conservationists.
The Annam pond turtle (Mauremys annamensis), a species restricted to the marshy wetlands of central Vietnam, was hunted down in the 1990s to supply the Chinese food trade, and only a handful are now left in the wild.
There are good populations in captivity. They breed well and their repatriation to Vietnam as a first step towards reintroduction has already begun.
Other eight other most threatened turtles are the red-crowned river turtle, Myanmar river turtle, Roti snake-necked turtle, Southeast Asian giant softshell turtle, Yunnan box turtle, Central American river turtle, bog turtle, and Coahuila box turtle.
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