Now That a Female Turtle Has Been Found, This Species Could Survive

A potential female mate to the Swinhoe’s softshell turtle, the second known living member of the world’s most endangered turtle species, has been found in Vietnam, giving the animal a fair fighting chance of survival.

“In a time full of bad news and sadness across the globe, the discovery of this female can offer all some hope that this species will be given another chance to survive,” says Hoang Bich Thuy, the director for the Wildlife Conservation Society in Vietnam. The female found in Dong Mo Lake, in Hanoi’s Son Tay district, measures 1 meter and weights 86 kilos, and will be monitored in the hopes that she can naturally procreate with the male that resides at Suzhou Zoo in China or survive an artificial insemination.

According to observers, another softshell turtle has been spotted in Dong Mo Lake, and due to its large size, it could be another male of the species. “Once we know the sex of the animals in Vietnam, we can make a clear plan on the next steps, hopefully, we have a male and a female, in which case breeding and recovery of the species becomes a real possibility,” says Timothy McCormack, Program Director of the Asian Turtle Program/Indo-Myanmar Conservation.