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Turtle and Tortoise Newsletter, Issue 3The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species released lastweek listed 24 turtle species worldwide as criticallyendangered, compared to ten species in the last assessmentin 1996. “With the number of critically endangered speciesmore than doubling in just the last four years, it is evidentthat the situation is deteriorating rapidly,” van Dijk said.The workshop and proceedings present information onthe status of more than 80 individual species at nationallevels; map trade routes and types of demand; analyzelegislative and enforcement frameworks protecting turtles;and assess national and regional threats to turtlepopulations posed by the trade. Among the recommendationsfound in the proceedings is a thorough review andimprovement of national legislation for effective protectionof turtles in the region as well as for prompt enforcement ofall local, state and national regulations and legislationconcerning the conservation of turtles. The participantsalso urged that more research be done on the trade andgreater public awareness efforts be made to highlight thethreats facing these species.“Several organisations and individuals are involved inpractical conservation action,” van Dijk said. “However,overall, tortoises and freshwater turtles do not yet receivethe support and recognition that marine turtles receiveeven though their conservation situation is, in manyways, much more serious. Without immediate action, weface the likelihood of losing some of these species forever.”For more media information, please contact Sabri Zainat TRAFFIC International (United Kingdom) by tel. +441223 277427 or E-mail: sabri.zain@trafficint.org.“Asian Turtle Trade: Proceedings of a Workshop onConservation and Trade of Freshwater Turtles andTortoises in Asia” (Chelonian Research Monographs,Number 2, 2000) is published by the Chelonian ResearchFoundation, in association with WCS, TRAFFIC, WWF,Kadoorie Farm and Botanic Gardens and the US Fish andWildlife Service.Observations in the Qing Ping Free Market, Guangzhou, China, November 2000HARALD ARTNER 1 AND ANDREAS HOFER 21Maria Ponsee 32, A-3454 Sitzenberg-Reidling, Austria; E-mail: 113142.3232@compuserve.com2Katzbach 104, A-4631 Krenglbach, AustriaQing Ping Free Market is the largest market in Chinaselling live turtles. We visited the market four to five timesa day (early and late morning, early and late afternoon andthe evening) between November 6 and 9, 2000. The mainexporting countries (according to the tags on the shippingcontainers and from numerous interviews with traders)were Myanmar, Malaysia, Indonesia (mainly Sumatra),and Vietnam. Here is a short survey of what could be foundin just a 4-day period:1. Hundreds of adult Morenia ocellata (CITES I)females and a couple of juveniles (maybe some males).2. Appr. 25 Geochelone platynota (CITES II) behindthe scenes.3. Chitra chitra from Myanmar!4. Few Callagur borneoensis (CITES II, appr. 15), noBatagur baska (contrary to May 2000 !)5. More Cuora amboinensis than ever (thousands).Listing in App. II totally in vain (as we always feared).6. Cuora trifasciata (adult, CITES II) sold for Y 9000.-(per head, not per pound; under the table, of course)7. Relatively few (app. 20) Cuora galbinifrons (CITES II)and Cuora flavomarginata (CITES II), maybe due to season?8. Hundreds of Heosemys grandis, Heosemys spinosa(from Sumatra), Cyclemys dentata, Orlitia borneensis,Indotestudo elongata, Pyxidea mouhotii (both subspecies),Siebenrockiella crassicollis (from Sumatra), Ocadiasinensis (Taiwan form, all sizes), Amyda cartilaginea,Trachemys scripta elegans.9. Also present: Cyclemys pulchristriata, Cyclemystcheponensis, Melanochelys trijuga edeniana, Platysternonmegacephalum, Chinemys reevesii, Mauremys mutica,Mauremys annamensis, Chinemys nigricans (1), Paleasteindachneri (1), Dogania subplana (2), Nilssoniaformosa (quite a few), Lissemys scutata, Geoemyda spengleri,Macroclemys temmincki, and Sacalia quadriocellata.10. Hundreds of Hieremys annandalei (shipped in byMalaysia and Singapore Airlines), Malayemys subtrijugaand Notochelys platynota (Sumatra).11. Millions of Pelodiscus from Thailand & Hainan Dao.12. No Indian, African or South American species!13. This time (contrary to prior visits in 1999 and2000) no Manouria impressa (CITES II) were seen.An Examination of the Concept of "Commercial Extinction"ALLEN SALZBERG67-87 Booth Street, #5b, Forest Hills, New York 11375 USA; Email: asalzberg@nyc.rr.comA commonly used phrase by conservationists is"commercial extinction." This is when commercial collectorsstop collecting an organism because the population level ofthat species has been reduced to a point that it's no longerworth the time, effort or physical risk, for the amount of14money they would be paid for the species in the openmarket. In other words, further attempts by the collector tofind that species have become uneconomical. The collectorsthen move on to another species that they can collect more ofin less time, thus earning them a greater profit.
Conservationists have long assumed that whenprofessional collectors, the people who can quickly andefficiently do the most damage, quit the field theyinevitably leave enough specimens available for conservationiststo save, and hopefully, enough to help grow thepopulation to pre-exploitation levels.Or if the pressure of the hunters, helped or caused thespecies rarity, the species has received a temporary pardon,providing conservationists and scientists some additionaltime to think about the problem, to study it, and to developthe right recovery plan.I believe the concept of "commercial extinction" ismeaningless.The assumption that drives the concept of "commercialextinction," is that when the professionals leave the field, tofind a more profitable resource to exploit, no one replacesthem. Unfortunately in underdeveloped countries this isnot true and probably never was.When a commercial collector leaves the field they areimmediately replaced by a new set of collectors. Collectorswho have all the time in the world to invest, collectors whowill go to great lengths and take great risks to find or catchthe plant or animal -- especially if the demand for thespecies has increased the price.Some of these collectors are usually "in-transit" orrefugees. They could have come from within the same oranother country. The collectors also consist of people wholive in the area and are so poor they barely survive.Using the same formulae used to determinecommercial extinction, you can also prove the term's ownJanuary, 2001invalidity. If the collector is a refuge, they spend most oftheir time sitting in refugee camps. Time is the only thingthey have to invest.A starving local farmer who can barely feed theirfamily can be easily pushed to take great risks tosupplement their incomes. Anyone, in any country, would.So with all these new reserves of time and risk toinvest, versus the potential return -- it is almost guaranteedthat these new collectors will be out in the field until theyare absolutely sure they've found the last one.How much of a return can these collectors expect?Reportedly the market for the Asian box turtle Cuoratrifasciata is so lucrative that a collector can earn up to$375.00 U.S. for a specimen up to 700 grams. A collectorin Vietnam can earn up to $1,000US/kg in a countrywhere the average yearly income is $200 US (Shi andParham, 2001).Conclusion? Once a market has been established for aplant or an animal, conservationists should not pause to act."Commercial extinction" does not exist, it doesn't providea pause on the organisms's march to extinction, and so doesnot give anyone more time to act, or create peer reviewed,scientific sound "recovery plans."Or as John Muir stated, ""If it's a race between themarket and nature, the market always wins."Literature CitedShi, H. and J.F. Parham. 2001. Preliminary Observationsof a Large Turtle Farm in Hainan Province,People’s Republic of China. TTN 3: 4-6.Environmental Education Kiosks Feature Multi-Media Programmingfor Mojave Desert VisitorsMICHAEL J. CONNORDesert Tortoise Preserve Committee, 4067 Mission Inn Ave., Riverside, CA 92501; E-mail: dtpc@pacbell.netThe Desert Tortoise Preserve Committee, Inc., anonprofit environmental organization based in Riverside,California, has launched a Mojave Desert-wide outreachprogram called the Mojave Desert Discovery Centers. TheDiscovery Centers feature an interactive CD-Rom web site,videotape presentations about the desert and its wildlife,and customized maps and brochures to guide visitors tofeatured desert attractions.The first phase of this innovative approach toenvironmental education involves locating DiscoveryCenter kiosks at three Mojave Desert locations:§ California Welcome Center, Barstow, California§ Joshua Tree National Park, Cottonwood VisitorCenter, California§ Nevada State Museum, Las Vegas, Nevada“The Mojave Desert Discovery Centers offer a uniqueway for the Committee to fulfill one of its major goals: toprovide information and education to the public on the15threatened tortoise and its habitat, and on the associatedplants and animals that share its desert ecosystem,” saysexecutive director, Michael Connor.“The Desert Tortoise Preserve Committee hasleveraged technology to reach out to diverse audiencesthroughout the Mojave Desert,” says project manager JunY. Lee. “Unlike traditional visitor center concepts, theDiscovery Centers are mobile and can be deployed in areaswhere recreational visitors congregate.”“We estimate that more than 500,000 people per yearwill interact with the Discovery Centers at the initial threelocations,” says Min Yang, AIA of the design firm Project:Architecture.The Mojave Desert Discovery Center program wasmade possible by a significant contribution from the lateJoan Leslie Dotzenrod and the generous support ofmembers of the Desert Tortoise Preserve Committee, Inc.Additional information about the Desert TortoisePreserve Committee, Inc. and its programs may be found atits website, www.tortoise-tracks.org.
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