Speed
A total of 257 critically endangered Cantor’s giant softshell turtles successfully hatched on sandbanks along Cambodia’s Mekong River, with officials continuing to monitor several additional nests. The hatches mark a major success, achieved through close cooperation between the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), local authorities and fishing communities.
Earlier this year, the Turtle Conservation Team led by the ministry’s General Directorate of Fisheries, in collaboration with WCS, discovered nests along the riverbanks, explained a May 23 WCS statement.
So far, 12 of the 14 nests have successfully hatched 257 turtles, while conservation teams continue monitoring the remaining nests.
Among the newly hatched turtles, 43 safely entered the Mekong River naturally. The remaining 214 hatchlings were transported to the Koh Kong Reptile Conservation Center (KKRCC), where they will receive care and protection before being released back into the wild. This process helps improve their chances of survival in nature.
The WCS noted that the successful discovery of the nests, and their subsequent hatching, was an important conservation achievement. It reflects the strong collaboration between the authorities, conservation organisations and local communities in in protecting natural habitats and preventing fishery crimes along the Mekong, it said.
The Cantor’s giant softshell turtle has disappeared from many countries. In Cambodia, stretches of the Mekong River in Kratie and Stung Treng Provinces are the only remaining habitats where the species survives, and they are home to the largest known population of these turtles in the world.
WCS appealed to all fishermen and community members not to catch Cantor’s Giant Softshell Turtles for food or trade, and to help protect their habitats.
