The catastrophic decline of the world’s freshwater turtles
By Jonathan Amos, Science correspondent, BBC News
10 September 2010
Freshwater turtles are in catastrophic decline, according to a new analysis by Conservation International (CI). The group says more than a third of the estimated 280 species around the world are now threatened with extinction. The unsustainable collection of turtles for food and to supply a lucrative pet trade are the key drivers behind the fall in numbers. Habitat loss as a result of river-damming for hydro-electricity is another major concern. Dr Peter Paul van Dijk, the director of Conservation International’s Tortoise and Freshwater Turtle Conservation Programme, said the outlook was bleak. “These are animals that take 15-20 years to reach maturity and then live for another 30-40 years, putting a clutch of eggs in the ground every year. They play the odds, hoping that in that 50-year lifetime, some of their hatchlings will somehow evade predators and go on to breed themselves. “But if you take these animals out before they’ve reached 15 and can reproduce, it all ends there,” he told BBC News. …
