March 4, 2020 — Florida freshwater turtles are being illegally caught and exported live in increasingly large numbers to keep up with demand for their meat, their supposed medicinal purposes and their value as pets, state wildlife officials said this month.
The black market trade is putting a strain on the state’s already vulnerable fresh water and terrestrial turtle populations, and officials say they expect demand to grow along with the dollar amount poachers in Florida can fetch.
Depending on the species, harvesters can make anywhere from $300 to more than $16,000 for a single turtle, officials say.
The appetite for freshwater turtles in Asian countries like China, Indonesia and India is already measured in tons per day, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, and it has reached the point where it is unsustainable. While China has large farms raising turtles, the demand for wild caught adult turtles in the country is exploding.
Turtles live a long time, some species from 80 to more than 100 years, and they reach sexual maturity later in life than many other animals. This combination makes their populations particularly at risk to not only poaching, but to development, traffic and predatory animals, as well as sea level rise and climate change.
Read the full story from the Miami Herald at the Baltimore Sun