As many as 71 individuals of Annam leaf turtle (Mauremys annamensis),an endemic tortoise species of Vietnam , have been sent from zoos inthe Netherlands and Germany back to their native land.

The Ninh Binh-based Cuc Phuong National Park ’s TurtleConservation Centre received the turtle individuals on August 19.

According to the centre’s Director Bui Dang Phong, this is the firsttime a large number of Vietnamese turtles successfully bred abroad havereturned to the country.

It marks considerableprogress made by Vietnam in preserving this species in the contextthat individuals in nature are rapidly decreasing due to illegal huntingand trading and degrading habitats, he added.

He also affirmed Vietnam ’s responsibility of actively protecting the endemic turtle species from these acts.

Henk Zwartepoorte, an official in charge of reptiles andamphibians at the Rotterdam Zoo, voiced his belief in Vietnam ’sglobal initiatives and efforts to help its endemic turtles live anddevelop in nature.

Coordinator at the Asian TurtleProgramme (ATP) Timthy Mc Cormack said the Annam leaf turtles, whichare only found in the wild in Vietnam ’s central provinces , arerecognised globally as the species in priority need of conservation.

The 71 returned individuals are expected to live with more than 200others rescued in the Turtle Conservation Centre with the final aim torelease all of them into the wild in Quang Ngai province.

Mauremys annamensis is a valuable and rare species only found ininundated areas, ponds and rivers in the central region. Since the late1980s, the population of Annam leaf turtles in the wild has nearlydisappeared due to poaching for trade.