China gobbling up Florida turtles – Asian turtles near extinction
By Craig Pittman, Times staff writer
A rising demand in China for turtles for food and medicine has led to the round-up of thousands of turtles from Florida’s lakes, ponds and canals. Exporters are shipping up to 3,000 pounds of softshell turtles a week out of Tampa International Airport, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. A Fort Lauderdale seafood company is buying about 5,000 pounds of softshell turtles a week. They’re worth about $2 a pound to the harvesters. "Asian countries are causing the extinction, the near extinction or the endangerment of every species of turtle they have over there, so now they’re turning to the United States to supply their insatiable demand for turtle," said Matt Aresco, a turtle biologist from the Panhandle.
