The Yangtze giant softshell turtle (Rafetus swinhoei) is also known as the Red River giant softshell turtle and in Chinese as the speckled softshell turtle. Cu Rua: Vietnam mourns revered Hanoi turtle, Relocation of endangered Chinese turtle may save species, "New individual of world's rarest turtle found in Hanoi", Notes on Chinese Mud-Tortoises (Trionychidae), with the Description of a new Species sent to the British Museum by Mr. Swinhoe, and Observations on the Male Organ of this Family, "COMPARATIVE MORPHOLOGICAL AND DNA ANALYSIS OF SPECIMENS OF GIANT FRESHWATER SOFT-SHELLED TURTLE IN VIETNAM RELATED TO HOAN KIEM TURTLE", "Bid to save world's rarest turtles fails", "Attempt to breed Rafetus in captivity ends in disappointment", "World's Last Yangtze Turtle Pair Fails to Reproduce, Again", "First Artificial Breeding Attempt for World's Rarest Turtle Unsuccessful", "There Are Only 3 of These Turtles Left on Earth", "Interview surveys in northern Vietnam look for remaining Swinhoe's softshell turtles in the wild", "Population of world's rarest giant turtle rises to 4 with new discovery", "More than one individual of Swinhoe's Softshell Turtle living in Dong Mo lake? The move was coordinated by the Wildlife Conservation Society and the Turtle Survival Alliance. Yangtze giant softshell, world's rarest turtle, dies in China zoo leaving only 3 known alive. Since 2006, no Yangtze giant softshell turtle has been found in the Red River Valley. [32] In May 2015, the female was successfully inseminated. Sadly, the Yangtze Giant Softshell Turtle replaced the Pinta Island Giant Tortoise (Chelonoidis abingdonii) as the chelonian most at risk of extinction when the last remaining individual of the tortoise species, "Lonesome George," died in 2012. The last known specimen caught in the wild in China was in 1998 in the Red River between Yuanyang and Jianshui; it was then released. There were only five known Yangtze giant softshell turtles left in the world in 2016 and all of them were raised in captivity. After decades of dams, overhunting and pollution the Yangtze giant softshell turtle is down to three known individuals.But conservationists McCormack added that in Dong Mo Lake, where the only other wild individual is known to occur, the lake owner has been very cooperative. Now, some turtle experts are confident they’ve identified a fourth specimen of this critically endangered turtle in Vietnam’s Xuan Khanh lake. The last known female Yangtze giant soft-shell turtle died in a Suzhou zoo in China in 2019.. Hunting has caused serious decline in some populations, including the aforementioned Yangtze giant softshell turtle. “I’ve put a lot of time into looking for this species and have always believed it has a chance.”. 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The Yangtze giant softshell (Rafetus swinhoei) is arguably the largest freshwater turtle in the world, and the most critically endangered. The individual was photographed two times in 2012 and 2017, but both times the photograph was blurry and provided little confirmation of its identity. The future of this species rests on the success of the captive breeding efforts or a miraculous discovery of previously unknown populations. [25] However, Farkas et al. However, all efforts to date to induce breeding, including artificial insemination, have failed. The Yangtze giant softshell turtle has been known to inhabit the Yangtze River and Lake Tai, situated on the border of Jiangsu and Zhejiang Provinces, in eastern China, and Gejiu, Yuanyang, Jianshui and Honghe in Yunnan Province in southern China. Liu Jinde, the director of the zoo said, "We've worked very hard on this, We ought to succeed. After decades of dams, overhunting and pollution the Yangtze giant softshell turtle is down to three known individuals.But conservationists It is one of the most endangered animals in the world.. Reports of a plausible giant softshell turtle in Xuan Khanh Lake first surfaced in 2012 in the form of a photograph, McCormack said. It is also the rarest. McCormack said they held back on announcing the turtle’s identity until after Goldberg’s team came back with reliable results. [38] At some point prior to 2015, a survey team from the conservation group Turtle Island apparently managed to locate an individual of R. swinhoei in a section of the Red River between two reservoirs. The animal was one of four Yangtze giant softshell turtles known to be remaining in the world. “If the fishing teams should catch the animal this week, accidentally or otherwise, we’d expect a rapid response from the authorities,” he said. She was believed to be over 90 years old at the time of her … “We analyzed many samples testing negative in addition to this positive sample. The Rafetus swinhoei inhabits the Yangtze River and Lake Taihu on the borders of Zhejiang and Jiangsu in Eastern China and the Yunnan Province in Southern China. [3][4][5], As of mid-2017, conservationists are searching for any possible wild individuals in the remote parts of China. Endangered Giant – The critically endangered Yangtze giant softshell turtle is one of the largest freshwater turtle species in the world, weighing in at a massive 220 lbs! [31] The Turtle Survival Alliance issued a statement explaining the infertility was due in part to the turtle's poor diet and the group expressed concern that the zoo's patrons had thrown trash into the turtle's enclosure that, if eaten, could endanger the health of the turtles. These turtles are the largest freshwater turtle in the world, but they are also on the brink of extinction. Since 2006, no Yangtze giant softshell turtle has been found in the Red River Valley. The Suzhou zoo, where the female turtle lived, also houses a male Yangtze giant softshell turtle. When Co Loa was attacked, Kim Qui assisted the king in making a magical cross-bow that massively rained arrows upon the invaders in only a single shot. “The species is very secretive and the lakes and large rivers that they are found in [are] large and complex,” he said. “This could be used to bring the two animals so far identified in Vietnam together, if male and female, for breeding. It may be the largest living freshwater turtle in the world. Following the creation of the Madushan Dam in China's Yunnan Province, local fishermen regularly reported sightings of one to two very large softshell turtles in the reservoir. Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). Of course there is still the slim chance that another closely related species could be misidentified or that genetic information on gene bank is not accurate. The carapaces are smooth and olive green and the turtles have quizzical faces with small eyes and a pointed snout. However, extensive surveys in 2016 and 2017 were unsuccessful in finding any such turtles. The Yangtze giant softshell turtle, believed to be more than 90 years old, died in Suzhou Zoo, just outside Shanghai, just a day after officials made a last-ditch effort at artificial insemination. [24] The genus name, Yuen, presumably comes from the Chinese 鼋 (transcribed yüen in the Wade-Giles system, or yuan in the modern Hanyu Pinyin), which means a large turtle. The King drew the sword and hurled it toward Kim Qui. 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