David S. Lee & Liao Shi
David S. Lee & Liao Shi Kun Greenhouse raised turtles are over fed, over drugged, and listless; they grow rapidly and their shells often lack pigment. The greenhouse turtles are mostly for the food market, but some are also sold as pets and are often jokingly called ‘hormone turtles.’ They quickly succumb to various diseases. The greenhouses are also major sources of water and air pollution. Serious water pollution results from discharge of sewage rich in ammonia, nitrogen, and phosphorus. Due to the high protein content of the feed and fecal contamination coliform bacteria counts are off the scale. Most farms discharge water directly into rivers killing fish and other aquatic animals downstream. Investigators examining the levels of pollution found the rivers lifeless; they developed major health issues while checking water quality after entering rivers adjacent to turtle farms. Local fishermen were interviewed who reported large numbers of dead fish in the river after discharges and several said the discharged water ran a dark black. Apparently the closed systems in the greenhouses and the added temperature create pollution problems that are more serious than those of open pond farms. The situation is particularly hazardous in Zhejiang Province but local officials interested in the economic development are not willing to address the problem. Heating greenhouses presents a problem, because of the high cost of coal and firewood; 95% of the farms burn Fig. 31. The photograph depicts Red-eared Sliders that have been raised with particular attention: Chinese regard the figure of Eight as a token of good luck, which motivated some private breeders and market traders to furnish hatchling turtles with a wire around the middle of their shells. As the turtle grows, the wire enforces a constriction in across the shell that deforms it to an outline of a figure of Eight (comp. Liao & Lee 2013). Photo: T. Blanck 22 RADIATA 23 (2), 2014
Turtles in Traditional Chinese Medicine Figs. 32–34. Mauremys reevesii (above), Mauremys mutica (center), Pelodiscus sinensis (bottom), and other turtle species grow to substantial weights much quicker on farms than in the wild (comp. Tab. 1). Photos: T. Blanck RADIATA 23 (2), 2014 23
