wild tortoises smuggled to Tamil Nadu - 3 arrested

Often we read about endangered animals being smuggled – and getting caught by Customs at Airports. Tortoises frequently figure in that - Tortoises are a family of land-dwelling turtles in the order Testudines. They are generally reclusive animals.   The angonoka tortoise (Astrochelys yniphora) is a critically endangered species of tortoise endemic to Madagascar. It is also known as the ploughshare tortoise. 

In Feb this year, 22 Olive Ridley turtle nests were sighted along the Marina and Elliot’s stretches by conservation volunteers – and that is stated to be the largest sighting seen on a stretch on a day.  Olive ridley turtles come to land to lay their eggs and return to sea.

According to Firstpost, in a rare (not the carriage but being caught) incidence over 100 wild tortoises, which were meant to be smuggled to Tamil Nadu, have been seized from three women train passengers in Thrissur district. Acting on a tip off, police carried out a check in a Chennai-bound train and seized the species from them.  The women, all hailing from Tamil Nadu, had boarded the train from Alappuzha with a basket full of wild tortoises, police said. The seized creatures and the smugglers were handed over to the Wildlife Department personnel today. Wild tortoises are protected under Schedule 1 of the Wildlife Protection Act 1972.

Meanwhile, animal rights groups alleged that the latest incident showed that Kerala was becoming an export hub of tortoises of wild species. Noted animal rights campaigner Heritage Animal Taskforce charged that many hotels in the southern part of the country offer various types of dishes made of these protected species.

In 2011  Huffingtonpost reported of a Japanese man pleading guilty to smuggling 55 live turtles and tortoises from his country into the United States by hiding them in snack food boxes. Federal prosecutors said in a statement that 39-year-old Atsushi Yamagami pleaded guilty to one felony count of smuggling in a Los Angeles courtroom. Yamagami faces a maximum of 20 years in prison for this crime.

In 2013 – 2  smugglers were caught by Thailand authorities attempting to sneak in  54 live ploughshare tortoises (also known as angonoka tortoises).  Media trying to report it sensationally stated that authorities have caught smugglers trying to sneak more than 10 percent of the remaining population of a critically endangered species into the country. Because the specie estimated to be left in the wild is between 200 to 400.

With regards – S. Sampathkumar                                 15^th Oct 2014.