Turtle Survival

in captivity, we initiated an experimental program
in 2013 to reintroduce captive bred Star
Tortoises at Minzontaung Wildlife Sanctuary
(MWS) – where local animist beliefs held that
spirits dwelling in a nearby mountain would
protect them from harm.
Three pens, each encompassing 1 hectare
of natural grassland and scrub habitat, were
constructed in the sanctuary and stocked with
150 subadult (5-7 year old) tortoises in November
2013. This ‘soft release’ approach allows tortoises
to become acquainted with their new surroundings
before groups of 50 are released at intervals
of 6, 12, and 18 months. The idea behind this
approach is that on-site penning makes the tortoises
less likely to wander from the release area.
This is of especial concern to us because MWS
is surrounded by farmland and the safety of any
tortoise that might venture onto these lands cannot
be guaranteed.
Even more importantly, the illicit wildlife
trade continues to pose a serious threat to the
future of Star Tortoises in Myanmar and constant
vigil must be maintained to guard against
poachers.
To this end, sanctuary rangers are stationed
at the holding pens 24 hours a day, seven days
a week and they conduct regular, aggressive
patrols throughout the sanctuary. Shallow pits
filled with sharpened bamboo punji stakes are
concealed along likely avenues of approach to
deal with any poacher who might slip past the
rangers in hopes of purloining a tortoise from the
pens.
Villagers prepare to release headstarted Burmese Roofed Turtles into Nam Thalet Chaung, a tributary of the Chindwin
River. Note the radio transmitters attached to the carapace of many of the turtles. PHOTO CREDIT: BY STEVEN G. PLATT
Before being released, the carapace of each headstarted Burmese Star Tortoise is permanently tattooed with a unique
identification and Buddhist icons in hopes of deterring poachers. PHOTO CREDIT: STEVEN G. PLATT
A WILDLY SUCCESSFUL RELEASE
We released the first group of 50 tortoises in
May 2014, the second in November 2014, and the
third in May 2015. We expanded the program
in late 2014, with the construction of three, 2
hectare holding pens in a different area of the
sanctuary. Next, 300 subadult tortoises, in approximately
equal sex ratio, were selected from
the assurance colonies, and after all were individually
examined and given a clean bill of health
by a team of visiting Bronx Zoo veterinarians,
were transferred into the pens to be liberated
within the coming year.
Per standard operating procedure, each
tortoise is affixed with a radio transmitter so that
it can be tracked after being liberated. Each one
is also permanently tattooed with an individual
identification number and Buddhist iconography
to deter poachers. So far, results are promising:
150 tortoises now roam free and another 300 in
the holding pens await release.
Encouragingly, survival has proven much
higher than we expected with only 11 tortoises
lost. Several fell victim to feral dogs or jackals,
others died after being mauled by large rats,
and some simply turned up dead with no clue
as to their demise. Much like natural selection,
reintroduction can be viewed as a winnowing
process and perhaps these individuals simply
failed to pack the Darwinian gear necessary for
survival in the wild.
Balanced against these losses, several females
have been observed laying eggs, both before
and after release from the holding pens. What’s
more, biweekly telemetry monitoring by teams of
sanctuary rangers and TSA/WCS staff revealed
that most tortoises remain within 1.0 km of the
holding pens, even months after being liberated.
This finding suggests the soft release approach
has imbued the tortoises with some degree of
site fidelity and ultimately keeps them within
the confines of the sanctuary where they can be
effectively protected.
a publication of the turtle survival alliance 29 visit us online at www.turtlesurvival.org