The male Yangtze giant softshell is now the only one of its species left in captivity ... Xinhua, the Yangtze giant soft shell turtle is known to have inhabited the Yangtze river in China and the Red river that flows from southern China into northern Vietnam for millions of years. Trong tells me via a translator that he remembers many turtles in the area when he was very young. The largest softshell turtle is the Yangtze giant softshell turtle. Click here to stay informed and know what is happening around the world with our G.K. and Current Affairs section. An endangered Yangtze giant softshell turtles dies, leaving only three of its species left By Staff The Associated Press Posted April 15, 2019 6:55 am After the last female turtle passed away, the species became effectively extinct. The rhino was named Iman and she died due to cancer. To this end, sections of the lake have become no-fishing zones. Meanwhile, the team tells me that whenever any of the village’s more than 50 fishermen see the turtle, they call Trong. They were just butchered and consumed locally, most of them,” McCormack says. Brandon Specktor. The enormous Yangtze giant softshell turtle is the world’s rarest turtle, with only three individuals thought to remain in the world. The female turtle (Rafetus swinhoei) which was over 90 years old died in Suzhou Zoo, Southern China on Saturday. Retrieved August 12, 2020. Apart from Xiangxiang, only three known softshell turtles are alive in the world. They want to keep it for long time for all students in the village can see it in the future,” Trong says via the translator. The proud father of 10 grown children, he makes us tea and tells us about the old days, when Yangtze giant softshell turtles were still abundant and adventure was high. In 2015 artificial insemination was attempted, a first for this species. There are only three known individuals in the world: one at China’s Suzhou Zoo, another one in Vietnam’s Hoan Kiem Lake, and a third confirmed in the wild in 2018. Mongabay is a U.S.-based non-profit conservation and environmental science news platform. Yet if a female can be found, the largest freshwater turtle on the planet just might not go extinct. The genders of the 2 turtles in Vietnam are unidentified. To date, there is no facility built for this, but McCormack says a number of sites are being considered, including the island on Dong Mo. When the dam was built, villagers were forced to move to a new spot on the edge of the reservoir. You may republish Mongabay content in your publication at no cost, Alleged gov’t-linked land grabs threaten Cambodia’s Cardamom Mountains, Fueled by impunity, invasions surge in Brazil’s Indigenous lands, Chinese demand and domestic instability are wiping out Senegal’s last forests, Solomon Islands environmental defender faces life sentence for arson charge, ‘Tamper with nature, and everyone suffers’: Q&A with ecologist Enric Sala, New paper highlights spread of organized crime from global fisheries, Study: Chinese ‘dark fleets’ illegally defying sanctions by fishing in North Korean waters, Game changer? The Yangtze giant softshell turtle, one of only four known to be left in the world, died at Suzhou zoo on Saturday, the city's government said in a statement, quoting the facility. Our EIN or tax ID is 45-3714703. The government has also made the decision of bringing the Spix macaw back in existence. It doesn’t during our short visit, but that’s to be expected of this shy god. While most marine turtle species are endangered, the Yangtze giant softshell turtle is the most endangered of them all — with only three known individuals remaining on the entire planet. Because of these factors, the number of known Yangtze giant softshell turtles in the world can be counted on one hand. McCormack believes that when the dams were built, several turtles became stranded in lakes and reservoirs like Dong Mo. The Yangtze giant soft-shell turtle or Red River giant soft-shell turtle is an endangered turtle from Asia. Le Huy Hoanh, the former turtle hunter, lives in a comfortable rural setting in a village not far from the lakes we visit. It is also the rarest. No one knows what happened to it. If the villagers don’t see it for a few months, McCormack says, “they start to worry.”. After our interview, Hoanh shows us the long spears used to kill the giant turtles, and the nets, deployed with hundreds of sharp curved hooks, deployed to entrap them. … The Yangtze giant softshell turtle is the largest freshwater turtle in the world, and it can grow to 100cm (39in) and weigh up to 100kg (nearly 16 stone). Endangered Giant – The critically endangered Yangtze giant softshell turtle is one of the largest freshwater turtle species in the world, weighing in at a massive 220 lbs! The species is completely extinct in the wild but there are a few tigers that are living in captivity. Spix macaw is a rare bird species which was primarily found in Brazil before it went extinct. The species got extinct when their natural habitat got disrupted due to groundwater extraction. However, the massive animals are not easy to catch. Goal: Do not let the Yangtze giant softshell turtle go extinct. This female Yangtze giant softshell turtle (pictured at her home at China's Suzhou Zoo) died while recovering from anesthesia on April 12, 2019. For reprint rights: Syndications Today, 7 wildlife species that have been extinct in 2019, World Wildlife Day 2020: 7 animals that went extinct in 2019, 3 animal species in India extinct due to desertification: Researchers at UNCCD meet, Last Sumatran rhino dies in Malaysia, smallest rhino species now extinct in Malaysia, Giraffes just silently went to the list of endangered animals facing extinction. We just need to find the survivors, catch them, and bring a breeding pair together, before the situation really becomes too late. Hoanh describes them as “very fast,” telling us how during one escapade a turtle managed to capsize the boat of hunters and escape. This would allow conservationists and veterinarians the ability to closely monitor the process, but keep the animals out of the public eye (unlike, say, at a zoo) and allow the staff to use local water from the lakes. “The softshell turtles didn’t sell for anything different in the market. According to an ANI report, at least three to four wildlife species have gone extinct due to desertification in India in 2019. Natural resources are being threatened because of human activity and so, the World Wildlife Day 2020 is being celebrated to raise awareness about such issues. Eighty-eight-year-old Le Huy Hoanh stands up from his bench and carefully poured tea in rural Vietnam, and mimes for us how he used to kill gods. A male Rafetus swinhoei (also known as Yangtze giant softshell turtle) is seen after being collected sperm at Suzhou Zoo, May 6, 2015, in Suzhou, Jiangsu province of China. The only known female, Yangtze giant softshell turtle died Saturday afternoon in a zoo in Suzhou City, east China's Jiangsu Province. One of the world's rarest turtles, a Yangtze giant softshell, has died in China, leaving just three known survivors of the species. Vietnam has changed much since Hoang was a child. Established in 1964, the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species has evolved to become the world’s most comprehensive information source on the global conservation status of animal, fungi and plant species. The pair in the Suzhou Zoo in China could be the last hope for the species if they reproduce. He responds with, “It tastes just like soft-shelled turtle.”. And as humans destroyed the wetlands, largely for rice paddies, they routed the turtles even further. Hoang says he kept attempting hunts for another few years, but most of the animals were gone by then. The last sighting of the bird was in 2016 and it was declared as extinct a few years after. With his long spear and a net flanked in cruel hooks, Hoanh was known for decades in his little village as an able hunter of the Yangtze giant softshell turtle (Rafetus swinhoei). Many smaller animals may have been caught too. There is the potential that this species may be found in larger more isolated lakes, but as of now, just four survive. It’s possible — with the proper resources, maybe even likely — that conservationists may find a pair capable of breeding. In a report by ANI in September, 2019, it was stated that the Indian Cheetah, along with three other species is now extinct in India due to desertification. Over a hunting career that spanned around six decades, Hoanh says he caught six large turtles in Suoi Hai Lake and 17 in the Dam Long wetlands. The alligator snapping turtle is the largest freshwater turtle. But the story of the turtle god, Kim Qui, doesn’t have to end here. Last week, a Yangtze giant soft-shell turtle named Cu Rua died, leaving just three members of her species alive on the planet, writes John R. Platt for Scientific American. He was born under French rule; Japanese occupation came next. Brazilians impacted by mining assert: ‘Genocide legalized by the state’, Only 40% of world’s forests have high ecological integrity, a new index reveals, Herd opportunity: Hundreds of elephants return to DRC’s Virunga, Palm oil, coca and gangs close in on Colombia’s Indigenous Nukak Makú, Hope and peace: Bison return to the Rosebud reservation. It has a long neck, capable of periscoping like an otter, a mottled snout, goggly eyes, and a pig nose — its countenance not unlike an alien out of Star Wars. She was over 90 years old. The other two … For these species, there’s very little in comparison.”. Perhaps one day, the animal could even be brought home to its “Lake of the Returned Sword” in Hanoi. Also known as Rafetus swinhoei, the female turtle died in the Suzhou zoo in southern China. At the same time the turtle population crashed. However, all efforts to date to induce breeding, including artificial insemination, have failed. The confirmation of one female could make all the difference. Apart from Xiangxiang, only three known softshell turtles are alive in the world. The Yangtze Giant Softshell Turtle Just Got 25 Percent Closer to Extinction. The animal was one of four Yangtze giant softshell turtles known to be remaining in the world. The intricate operation was carried out by conservation experts hoping to save one of the planet’s rarest species, with only ONE female Yangtze giant soft-shell turtle left on Earth. The Yangtze giant soft-shell turtle or Red River giant soft-shell turtle (Rafetus swinhoei) is an endangered turtle from Asia.Only three of these turtles are known to be alive today. Only three of these turtles are known to be alive today. In other words, it turns out getting DNA for the Yangtze giant softshell turtle is like finding a needle in a haystack or, you know, a single turtle in a massive body of water. With his long spear and a net flanked in cruel hooks, Hoanh was known for decades in his little village as an able hunter of the Yangtze giant softshell turtle (Rafetus swinhoei). This is more than 10 million years before humans last shared a common ancestor with baboons! The Yangtze giant softshell turtle ... Half of the eggs were left in the sand to incubate naturally, while the other half were moved to incubate at varying temperatures and humidities. Earth is home to countless species of flora and fauna but due to climate change, poaching and other factors, a lot of them are getting extinct. Or a myth, as good as a god. Retrieved August 12, 2020. Melissa Petruzzello. Dong Mo isn’t really a lake at all, but a 1,400-hectare (3,460-acre) reservoir, created when the Red River was dammed more than 40 years ago. Nov 13, 2020 | Updated: 04:00 PM EST We head up the island and visit a recently constructed bamboo hut for Trong’s convenience, so he has a shelter to sit in while watching for the turtle of Dong Mo to make its appearances. Along with the ATP, the current proposal involves numerous conservation groups, including the Wildlife Conservation Society, Global Wildlife Conservation, Turtle Survival Alliance, Indo-Myanmar Conservation, the Hanoi University of Science, and, of course, Vietnamese officials. The Yangtze giant softshell turtle (Rafetus swinhoei) is considered the most critically endangered turtle in the world, with only four known individuals left on Earth. One could say he’s become attached. The Yangtze giant softshell turtles thrive in muddy water and can weigh up to 90 kg (200 pounds) One of the world’s rarest turtles, a Yangtze giant softshell, has died in China, leaving just three remaining. World Wildlife Day is celebrated every year on March 3, as proclaimed by the United Nations, to celebrate and raise awareness about the world's wild animals and plants. Currently, he says, the most likely plan would be to attempt breeding in a captive situation but on site. A breeding effort in China has yet to be successful. Yes, says McCormack. One of the remaining four individuals is in captivity at Suzhou Zoo, China, where efforts are ongoing to achieve captive breeding. There was the rise of Ho Chi Minh, the fall of France, and the Vietnam War (when Hoang was in his forties), or as they call it here, the American War. Reports suggest that the loss of wildlife will have a heavy negative impact on human life and the entire ecosystem. The Asian giant softshell turtle (Pelochelys cantorii), also ... was actually a misidentified Yangtze giant softshell turtle. With just one healthy pair, and a bit of luck, the global population could go from three to more than 50 in 12 months’ time. They have tiny, piglike snouts and large, smooth shells. Now demand for Chinese traditional medicine means that turtle bones can be worth a small windfall. The Suzhou zoo, where the female turtle lived, also houses a male Yangtze giant softshell turtle. It is completely wiped out in Cambodia and the largest number of tigers are now residing in Thailand. The report also showed how this desertification had a negative impact on the entire food chain. Yangtze giant softshell turtle The last known female of this rare species, named Xiangxiang, died in an artificial insemination process in April, 2019. “They maintain it for, yes, future generations.”. “All the people in the village and all the fishermen now know this Rafetus species in here [and] very rare. It was the inspiration behind the mythological creature “Bi Xi” or “Ba Xia,” the sixth son of the dragon in ancient Chinese … With Xiangxiang’s death at the age of 90 on Saturday, there are now just three of her kind known to humans — one male turtle at the same zoo, said to be more than 100 years old, and two living in the wild in Vietnam of undetermined gender. Experts had tried to artificially inseminate the creature for a fifth time before she died. Chinese paddlefish is one of the largest freshwater fishes in the world and it was most commonly found in the Yangtze River in Asia. He says there’s still a chance to save this species — if we act quickly. After the last female turtle passed away, the species became effectively extinct. The surviving male turtle at Suzhou Zoo is believed to be around 100 years old. The last known female Yangtze giant soft-shell turtle died in a Suzhou zoo in China in 2019.. The Yangtze giant softshell turtle is considered an endangered species. As in Dong Mo, no turtle god appears, but according to DNA, at least, it’s there, just below the surface. According to CNN, the other two Yangtze giant softshell turtles live in the wild in Vietnam, but their genders are unknown. Here, the ATP used a different strategy to find the turtle: after reports and photos of the animals proved inconclusive, they turned to environmental DNA, or eDNA. Instead of going out on a boat, we talk a short walk, in the heat of the afternoon, around a small portion of Xuan Khanh, within sight of where the turtle mostly resides. Its numbers reduced to 1500 and then eventually the species became extinct. If you look at tiger conservation or elephant, you’re talking about millions of dollars being put into it. We depend on support from users like you. The fish was living in the wild till 1994, but due to the rapid loss, the species was moved to captivity. The smallest species of turtle is the speckled Cape tortoise that grows to 3.1 inches and weighs 5 ounces. The last known female Yangtze giant soft-shell turtle died in a Suzhou zoo in China in 2019. There are two next steps: one is to figure out the sex of the two turtles in the lakes. The dam is how McCormack and his team suspect the turtle god found its way here. But with only three animals, can anything be done? Hoanh tells us that poachers sold the bones of one turtle for 45 million Vietnamese dong — nearly $2,000. Survivors probably succumbed to hunters. These turtles are the largest freshwater turtle in the world, but they are also on the brink of extinction. Thursday, 05 March 2020. (Photo credit: haithanh/Wikimedia Commons) There are just three Yangtze giant softshell turtles left in the world. Semen was extracted from the sedated male using electro-ejaculation. It is one of the most endangered animals in the world. The last known female of this rare species, named Xiangxiang, died in an artificial insemination process in April, 2019. This means that although the team has deployed eDNA in other water bodies — and only gotten negatives — they still can’t rule out other turtles. They can live for nearly a century and grow to be nearly 200 pounds. Perhaps it was the final giant of his career. The 90-year-old female was one of only four Yangtze giant softshell turtles left on the planet. But eDNA has its limits in the search for more turtles: McCormack says the technology is not the “silver bullet” they’d hoped. Retrieved August 12, 2020. The animal was one of four Yangtze giant softshell turtles known to be remaining in the world. It survived till 2012 and then got completely extinct in 2019. The Yangtze giant softshell turtle has one living close relative: the Euphrates softshell turtle (Rafetus euphraticus), which is currently listed as endangered by the IUCN and clocks in at 59 on the EDGE list. The Hoàn Kiếm turtle was an invalid taxon of turtle from Southeast Asia, found in Hoàn Kiếm Lake in Hanoi, Vietnam.Although some Vietnamese biologists assert that R. leloii is a distinct species from the Yangtze giant softshell turtle Rafetus swinhoei, of which there are only three known living specimens left in the world, most authorities classify it as synonymous with the latter species. McCormack and his team believe that Yangtze giant softshell turtles, as the name suggests, aren’t really lake turtles; they’re river and wetland turtles. The turtle’s tale is already a sad one, with modernization and over-hunting … To get more updates on Current Affairs, send in your query by mail to [email protected], What agitating farmers want, and why the Centre may not oblige, How preparation for Covid vaccination drive is an opportunity to make PHCs energy efficient, The Rajinikanth dilemma in Tamil Nadu politics, Battered Congress looks at hard road ahead, Delhi air quality remains at 'very poor' category, Shehla Rashid's father claims threat to life from her, JNU student calls him 'wife-beater', Farooq Abdullah's brother Mustafa Kamal named in Roshni land scam, Watch: PM Modi offers prayers at Kashi Vishwanath temple, Assam elementary schools to reopen from January 1: Education minister, GHMC elections 2020: Telangana minister KT Rama Rao, AIMIM chief Owaisi cast vote, India briefs foreign diplomats, hands over dossier on Nagrota incident, Copyright © 2020 Living Media India Limited. “This is when people started realizing they were rare,” McCormack adds. One of the last four died leaving only three of its kind living on Earth. Interested in General Knowledge and Current Affairs? But its oddity and rarity is what brought me here. This species was mainly found in southeast Asia before it became critically endangered. I ask Hoanh, via the translator, what the giant tastes like? With the death, only three known members of the species are left. With the death of Vietnam’s beloved Cu Rua, only three of these turtles remain on the planet Last week, a Yangtze giant soft-shell turtle named Cu Rua died, leaving just three members of her species alive on the planet, writes John R. Platt for Scientific American. Finally, reunification and independence. Now, there is likely just the one here, but Trong knows this individual very well. While the last turtle god of Hoan Kiem perished in 2016 (“It was like losing part of our culture,” Hoang Van Ha, a conservationist with the Asian Turtle Program, or ATP, told The New Yorker), the species is not wholly gone — just almost. Trigger. The species once flourished in … The animal was one of four Yangtze giant softshell turtles known to be remaining in the world. Death of Yangtze giant softshell turtle came a day after artificial insemination attempt Agence France-Presse in Shanghai Mon 15 Apr 2019 05.57 EDT Last modified on … On average, Trong sees the turtle about two to three times a month. The main reason for its extinction is hunting and poaching. But McCormack says what’s needed most is funding. The chances of actually seeing this turtle god are slim, I’m told repeatedly, but everyone on the boat still keeps a keen eye out. These extraordinary turtles are teetering on the brink of extinction. But increasingly, hooks and lines were used as an easier, less perilous option. A female Yangtze giant softshell turtle is seen at China's Suzhou Zoo in 2015. The numbers dropped down to 150 and eventually the species died out. “Extinct in the Wild but Still Around: 5 Plants and Animals Kept Alive by Humans.” Britannica. Yangtze giant softshell turtles are critically endangered with just four known animals left. “We analyzed many samples testing negative in addition to this positive sample. Read: 3 animal species in India extinct due to desertification: Researchers at UNCCD meet, Read: Last Sumatran rhino dies in Malaysia, smallest rhino species now extinct in Malaysia, Read: Giraffes just silently went to the list of endangered animals facing extinction. Not only can old turtles weigh more than two men combined — a single bite from their beaked mouth can rip a person’s flesh clean off. A 100-year-old male remains at the Suzhou Zoo. “If he goes to work and he doesn’t see it that day, sometimes he feel a bit sad — which turns out to be many days,” the translator tells me. Some experts have now confirmed the presence of a Yangtze giant softshell turtle in Vietnam, increasing the total known population of the turtle to four individuals. About 20 kilometers (12 miles) northwest of Dong Mo sits another lake: Xuan Khanh, smaller and less picturesque than Dong Mo, but, as of 2018, the known home to another Yangtze giant softshell turtle. They are the largest species of freshwater turtles in the world, measuring up to forty inches in length and weighing easily over 200 pounds. There was thought to b… The species is number 20 on the Zoological Society of London’s EDGE list of reptiles, which ranks species based on a combination of their genetic distinctiveness and how imperiled they are. A more realistic range of carapace length for this species is reportedly 70 to 100 cm (28 to 39 in) and it is one of about a half-dozen giant softshell turtles from three genera that reach exceptionally large sizes, i.e. In their natural habitat, the turtles probably migrated through the rivers and nested on sandbanks in wetlands. The main habitat of this unique turtle was the Yangtze River and other inland Chinese waterways. He estimates the last animal he tried to hunt weighed 400 kg (880 lb) — almost twice the size of any known Yangtze softshell turtle. This year's theme is "Sustaining all life on Earth". Retrieved August 12, 2020. One of the rarest turtles on the world, Yangtze Giant Softshell died in a Chinese zoo. “China turtle death: One of last four known Yangtze giant softshells dies.” BBC. The death of Iman made the species critically endangered, with less than 80 Sumatran rhinos left all over the world, primarily in Indonesia. After a short ride, we reach the island and meet Nguyen Van Trong. Still, Tim McCormack, the head of the ATP headquartered in Hanoi, isn’t despairing. The Yangtze giant softshell turtle (Rafetus swinhoei) is also known as the Red River giant softshell turtle and in Chinese as the speckled softshell turtle. They’ve discovered that eDNA may give many, many potential false negatives, likely due to trying to get the DNA of a single animal from a large body of water. Needed most is funding one female could make all the difference that this species is deemed extinct in world... Of their own got disrupted due to cancer reader-supported conservation and environmental science news service three to four species... Even be brought to the rapid loss, and change in environments for rice paddies they! Success, he was born under French rule ; Japanese occupation came.. S more demand for them. ” softshell turtle—one of the turtle god found its way here million! 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