JUNE 30 (Reuters) — Philippine authorities recovered more than 4,000 critically endangered turtles at a warehouse in Palawan Island, believed to be bound for China and the illegal pet trade, an animal conservation group said on Wednesday (June 25).
Katala Foundation, an animal conservation organization that works with the local government of Palawan, said they received the turtles a day after authorities found the animals stuffed inside crates at a warehouse on June 17.
“They were transported to the south, kept in warehouses and in very, very poor condition and were awaiting shipment to – most probably – to China for the pet trade, as it looks. They are in terrible conditions, they are kept for quite a while,” said Sabine Schoppe, the Director of Katala Foundation’s Philippine Freshwater Conservation Program.
Charles Innis, the group’s veterinarian, said about 1,100 turtles were currently being treated inside a nature conservation park, and would be released back to their natural habitat once they were healthy enough.
He said some of the turtles had suffered due to the debilitating conditions and died during treatment. The group said at least 90 turtles were found dead.
Schoppe said she believed the turtles were going to be shipped to China.
“We are experiencing confiscations every year, and that means the trade has increased, not the number of confiscations, but the trade has increased, and it’s easier to get these guys because there are so many. There is a high demand, mainly from east China countries for pet trade mainly, but there is also food trade and traditional Chinese medicine,” Schoppe said.
Schoppe added that each turtle can sell for at least $300 on the underground market in China, while some illegal traders are able to sell them to western countries like the United States and Europe for as much as $2,500.
The Philippine forest turtle, otherwise known as Siebenrockiella leytensis, is a species of freshwater turtles found only in the northern region of Palawan Island.
The International Union for Conservation of Nature has classified the Philippine forest turtles as “critically endangered” due to the illegal pet trade.
The Philippines prohibits the selling of these endemic species under the Philippine Wildlife Act.
