Two species of critically endangered tortoises were reintroduced to Bangladesh’s forests last December. Six captive-bred elongated tortoises (Indotestudo elongata) were first released in Lawachara National Park in northeastern Bangladesh on Dec. 18. This was followed by the release of 10 Asian giant tortoises (Manouria emys phayrei) in Matamuhuri Reserve Forest in the Chittagong Hill Tracts of southeastern Bangladesh on Dec. 24. The reintroductions were a joint effort of the Turtle Survival Alliance (TSA), the Creative Conservation Alliance (CCA) and the Bangladesh Forest Department, TSA said in a statement. “The recent release of a group of captive-bred tortoises last month is a significant milestone, but it represents the culmination of over a decade of dedicated effort,” Shahriar Caesar Rahman, CEO of CCA, told Mongabay by email. This is the first time captive-bred elongated tortoises have been reintroduced to their native habitats in Bangladesh. It follows the success of a 2021 pilot project when 10 Asian giant tortoises were released in Matamuhuri, with “zero poaching incidents and a 70% survival rate,” TSA said. Rahman said Asian giant tortoises are extinct across most of their historic range in Bangladesh and “only a remnant population of few wild individuals are found in one locality in Bangladesh-Myanmar border area.” The species has faced severe decline, mainly from poaching, subsistence hunting by local communities, and habitat loss. The elongated tortoise can be found more widely, but much of its population in Bangladesh has also been wiped out due to subsistence hunting and habitat loss. The captive-raised tortoises,…This article was originally published on Mongabay
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