Emergence of 26 more black-spotted turtles in DHA puzzles environmentalists

Karachi
After the Viccaji sisters managed to rescue and hand over a total of 42 endangered black-spotted turtles to the authorities on Monday, 26 more turtles - five of them - dead were found inside a jute bag dumped in an empty plot in Defence on Wednesday, much to the astonishment of wildlife officials and environmentalists.
“A family approached the WWF-Pakistan today and said they had four black-spotted turtles, which they had found near their residence. When our team reached there to collect these turtles, they found some more turtles moving out of a vacant plot. A total of 26 turtles were found from the vacant plot, out of which five were already dead,” Asif Sandeelo, an official of WWF-Pakistan told The News.
This is the second time in this week when such a large quantity if endangered and freshwater turtles were found dumped in the Defence Housing Authority (DHA). On Monday, Rachel and Zoe Viccaji helped rescue 42 turtles they had found dumped in Defence Phase VIII.
Dozens of endangered, black-spotted turtles had been found from the Korangi causeway in October 2015 as well, similarly dumped in jute bags by unknown culprits.
The phenomenon has puzzled Sindh wildlife officials and experts from the private sector as well.
“Today we found 25 black-spotted turtles from DHA and a day before yesterday, 42 turtles including one of the soft-shell species, had been found from the same vicinity. We are investigating this issue but so far we have no idea, what is happening and why these endangered amphibians are being thrown away in Defence area,” remarked the conservator of Sindh wildlife department, Saeed Baloch. “All these turtles and also those found last month from the Korangi causeway area are freshwater species found in the Indus River System and are considered as extremely endangered species.”
He said the poaching, possession and smuggling of these black-spotted turtles was strictly prohibited and carried heavy punishment of imprisonment and hefty fines. “Perhaps their poachers and smugglers are releasing them because they fear a crackdown against them,” Baloch surmised.
Another official of the Sindh wildlife department, Adnan Hamid Khan, was also just as clueless about the dumping of rare amphibians. However, he said, a team of wildlife department’s experts and investigators were busy in tracking down the culprits, who were behind such a strange activity.
“The Sindh wildlife department is investigating this issue but it is also the responsibility of the DHA security to check, who is behind throwing of such a large number of rare animals in their area,” he said.
Umair Shahid, a WWF-Pakistan coordinator, reasoned that due to strict surveillance at airports and sea routes, smugglers were probably dumping their catch since now the penalty for possessing and smuggling the endangered species included fine of millions of rupees and imprisonment of several years.
“A black spotted turtle is sold for between US$1,000 to $1500 in the international market, especially in countries of the Far East, so their smuggling is a lucrative business,” he said.
“The people in China and Far East are very fond of turtle soup, which is considered extremely good for vitality but and one of the most expensive delicacies.”
Meanwhile, the WWF-Pakistan officials urged the residents of DHA and other parts of the city to remain vigilant and help them rescue the rare turtles so they could be released back into their natural habitat.
“We urge people to help us rescue these turtles. Anybody who finds them should approach us so that we release them into the wild with the help of Sindh wildlife department,” appealed Sandeelo.