Hoan Kiem Turtle - Conservation Concerns

Conservation Concerns

Despite eyewitness sightings of two or more turtles, Professor Duc believes that there is only one specimen left in the Hoan Kiem Lake. Peter Pritchard, a renowned turtle biologist, believes that there are no more than five specimens left.

The lake itself is both small and shallow, measuring 200 metres wide, 600 metres long, and only two meters deep. It is also badly polluted, although the turtles could conceivably live underwater indefinitely, coming to the surface only for an occasional gulp of air or a bit of sun. According to Pritchard, the turtles are threatened by municipal "improvements" around the lake. The banks have been almost entirely cemented over, leaving only a few yards of rocky beach where a turtle might find a place to bury her clutches of 100 or more eggs.

Plans are underway to clean the lake of pollution, and the construction of an artificial beach has been proposed to facilitate breeding. Dredging the lake, to clean up its bottom, was carried out in February and March 2011.

Professor Duc is currently organizing people to protect this animal and is quoted as saying, "We hope that we will find a partner for the turtle in Ho Guom, so that our legendary animal could avoid extinction." Believing the turtle to be different from swinhoei, he is against the idea of crossbreeding turtles of the two kinds. Some view the idea that the species are distinct as being politically and culturally motivated by anti-Chinese sentiment.