Turtles in Trouble: The World's 25+ Most Endangered - Wildlife ...

Turtles in Trouble: Top 25+ Endangered Tortoises and Freshwater Turtles—2011Burmese Star TortoiseGeochelone platynota (Blyth 1863); Family TestudinidaeAsia: MyanmarIUCN Red List: CR, Critically Endangered A1cd+2cd, C2aCITES: Appendix II, as Testudinidae spp.Distribution of Geochelone platynota.Geochelone platynota from Myanmar at Behler Chelonian Center. Photo by Brian D. Horne.The Burmese Star Tortoiseis a “star” among tortoises withbeautiful well-defined symmetricalstar patterns radiating across itscarapace. It is also one of the raresttortoises in the world, havinga limited distribution that is underintensive human induced pressures.Its close relative, the Indian StarTortoise (Geochelone elegans) isvery similar in appearance, but theBurmese Star Tortoise can be easilydistinguished by having a greaterstar pattern on the carapace and ahorny claw at the tip of the male’stail. An additional distinguishingfeature is that the plastron of Geocheloneplatynota has dark blotchesand lacks the ‘stars’ found on theplastron of G. elegans.Unfortunately, very little is knownabout this species in the wild, as itis one of the least studied of all tortoises.Based on the limited data available, we know thatit inhabits the dry zone of central Myanmar (Burma),where it occurs in deciduous forests, thorn scrub, andpastures. The Burmese Star Tortoise is locally collectedfor human consumption; however, the demand for itsmeat from neighboring China, as well as its purportedmedicinal benefits, has resulted in intensive unsustainablehunting. More recently it has become highly prizedin the international pet trade, further exacerbating thesehunting pressures, resulting in almost total extirpation ofall animals from the wild. Recent surveys indicate thatonly a few extremely small fragmented populations remain,with most previous populations entirely destroyed(based on recent fieldwork there are essentially no viablepopulations remaining in the wild). The species waspreviously known to occur in two protected areas, ShweSettaw Wildlife Sanctuary and the Minzontaung WildlifeSanctuary, but today only captive populations existunder strict lock and key at breeding facilities in thesesanctuaries, with theft being of great concern.Conservation measures for the species include thecreation of in-situ and ex-situ assurance colonies. Breedingprograms exist in Myanmar with the hopes that theoffspring can be released back into the wild at some futurepoint. In addition, the Turtle Survival Alliance hasbeen instrumental in sharing husbandry techniques andhas invested heavily in building expanded captive managementfacilities, that has resulted in increased captivebreeding success. Recently, the Turtle Conservancy establishedan agreement with the Taipei Zoo (these twoorganizations have the largest captive breeding group ofBurmese Star Tortoises outside of Myanmar) to returnyoung produced at both facilities to Myanmar for eventualrelease back into the wild. However, a tough roadlies ahead before any releases can be successful becauseany wild tortoise stands a high chance of being collected.Education awareness programs need to be initiatedso that this trend can be reversed. Additionally, habitatdestruction needs to be halted, as the rapid rate of lossmay not leave any suitable habitat for future tortoise releases.– 28 –