Hatch, baby, hatch! Out of the world’s four remaining Yangtze giant softshell turtles, there exists only one mating pair. Since their fated introduction in 2008, Changsha Zoo’s female and Suzhou Zoo’s older male have mated every year, producing eggs even. And yet, year after year, the results are the same: none of the eggs have been fertile. Sundry causes may attribute to these letdowns. Nevertheless, conservationists remain hopeful. Though the male is nearly a century old, and the female in her eighties, the giant softshell turtle can live well over a hundred years. There is still time. Critically endangered and two shy of being extinct in the wild, the fate of the world’s largest freshwater turtle rests on the two lovers’ softshells. Time to get fertile, turtle.
Posted on: Fri, 05 Jul 2013 20:06:09 +0000
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