Over 8,000 captive baby tortoises die

P. OPPILI

Reptiles were seized at airport on Tuesday, housed at private vet clinic

• 9,000 baby red-eared slider tortoises were seized by Chennai airport officials on Tuesday
• The passenger who was carrying them had got them in China, and flown in to Chennai from Kuala Lumpur
• They had been stacked one on top of the other, in three cartons
• Of the 9,000, less than 800 are currently alive
• Each baby tortoise was about three inches in size
• The tortoises get their name from the distinctive red patch of skin around their ears
• They are semi-aquatic reptiles, and very popular as pets
• They can live for up to 30 years

Two days after the seizure of 9,000 baby tortoises by customs officials at the airport, shocked animal welfare activists have found that fewer than 800 have survived.

Airport officials had seized the tortoises from a passenger who had come in from Kuala Lumpur, and was attempting to exit through the green channel. Activists said the red-eared slider tortoises, which were just a few days old, were stacked one on top of another and packed into three cartons, with no provisions for aeration or food.

The tortoises had been bought by a city resident, who deals in the wholesale trade of pets.

The tortoises were handed over to State wildlife authorities, who later housed them a private veterinary clinic in Guindy. Even at the time of their being handed over, 1,500 died, and the wildlife authorities only received 7,500 live tortoises.

Activists said they were surprised by the authorities’ move to house the surviving tortoises at the private clinic, instead of taking them government’s quarantine centre in Medavakkam, as per government norms.

At the private clinic, the tortoises were kept in tubs, with each tub containing more than 300 tortoises, they said.

They pointed out that this was not the first time such a huge number of red-eared slider tortoises have been brought to Chennai.

A similar consignment arrived here about a year ago, and then too, the tortoises had been taken to the same private clinic in Guindy instead of to the quarantine centre.

Allowing the import of exotic animals to be reared as pets will lead to problems for endemic or native species. Moreover, pet owners become afraid once the tortoises grow older, an activist said.

When they find it difficult to find a suitable home for their pets, many owners end up abandoning them on the roads, he added.

Noted conservationist Shekar Dattatri said: “This seizure has revealed the extent of the illegal trade in this and other non-native species that are smuggled into the country. Many people buy these turtles to keep them as pets, or because they believe that keeping one brings good luck. What they probably do not realise is that for every turtle that survives the journey to India, hundreds die in the tightly-packed containers in which they are smuggled. I appeal to people not to buy exotic species like these turtles, as it encourages a very cruel trade.”

Source: http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/chennai/over-8000-captive-baby-tortoises-die/article4559180.ece

Tortoise smuggling bid thwarted, 2 held

A fresh water tortoise that was rescued by forest officials, in the city
on Saturday | Martin Louis

Chennai: Two persons, suspected to be couriers, were caught at the International Airport here when they attempted to smuggle 27 fresh water tortoises to Bangkok on Friday night. The two couriers, who had been transporting textile clothing for more than 10 years, claimed they received the baggage with the tortoises at Central Railway Station but were not aware of what was inside it.

Forest officials said that the passengers, H Shamsudeen (67), a native of Kamuthi in Ramanathapuram district currently living in Washermenpet in Chennai, and M Mohamad Yoonus (47), of Ilayangudi in Sivagangai district and presently living in Seven Wells here, were caught before they could board a flight to Bangkok. Customs officials fell suspicious of the stroller suitcase they were carrying and intercepted them. When the officials checked their baggage, they found 27 fresh water adult tortoises neatly packaged and kept inside.

Customs officials questioned the duo and found that they did not possess any valid document to carry the species, protected under the Schedule IV of Wildlife Protection Act, 1972.

The passengers were detained and were later handed over to the forest department.

Forest officials said the duo was booked under Section 39 (3) (A) (B) and 48 A of the Wildlife Protection Act. “They claimed they received the baggage from an unidentified man at Central Railway Station around 5 pm on Friday before heading for the airport. The maximum punishment for such an offense is seven years imprisonment,” said S Davidraj, forest ranger, Velachery range office.

Mohamed Yoonus, one of the passengers, told Express that he had been operating as a carrier for the past 20 years transporting textile clothing from merchants in North Chennai to Malaysia and Bangkok. “I have been doing this for the past 10 years. Once we get acquainted with a person, we don’t check or inquire what they have in the baggage. We were told we would get `3,000 and were instructed to hand over the box to a man waiting at Bangkok airport wearing a black shirt,” Shamsudeen, the other passenger, told forest officials. But passengers could not give a convincing reply when asked by forest officials why they did not check the content of the baggage when they received it from a stranger.

The rescued tortoises were given carrots and cabbage and the officials said they would be sent to the Arignar Anna Zoological Park in Vandalur. Last time around a similar arrest was made at the Airport in 2010, officials said adding that smuggling of wildlife through Chennai had come down considerably due to intensive checking and strict punishments.

Source: http://newindianexpress.com/cities/chennai/article1457314.ece