Supporting the rescue of more than 100 endangered turtles at Hanoi Wildlife Rescue Centre, Vietnam

From the 12^th to 14^th of February 2020, staff of the Asian Turtle Program (ATP) of Indo Myanmar Conservation (IMC) made another regular visit to Hanoi Wildlife Rescue Centre (HWRC), Vietnam, to help the centre to deal with a large number of confiscated animals.

HWRC acts as one of the principal multiple-species rescue centres of Vietnam, receiving animals from wildlife confiscations throughout the country, mainly from the north of the country, many of these animals need rehabilitation, in some cases placement at other centres or release back to the wild. Currently, the centre is running at full capacity, and, with regards to tortoises and freshwater turtles, has 127 individuals of 15 native species such as the critically endangered Vietnamese Pond Turtle (Mauremys annamensis), endangered Yellow-headed Temple Turtle (Heosemys annandalii), endangered Keeled Box Turtle (Cuora mouhotii), and endangered Big-headed turtle (Platysternon megacephalum).

As a general wildlife centre, Soc Son can receive anything, from tigers and bears to snakes and birds, as such we have made numerous visits in recent years to support them specifically on tortoises and freshwater turtles. This has included turtle-specific veterinarian care, captive management support and some equipment and enclosure improvements, supporting the care of such a large number of different species which often have special needs. We have also supported the release of animals back into the wild or for placement at other centres. During this trip the ATP team spent 3-day providing hands-on training on healthcare, feeding, and environmental enrichment to the HWRC staff.

We would like to thank staff of Animal Asia for helping organize activities at HWRC and the HWRC staff for their hard work taking care of turtles at the centre. We would also like to thank our supporters who make this work possible including Cleveland Metropark Zoo and IUCN.

The ATP/IMC would like to broaden our support for rescue centres throughout the region, if you would like to support our activities, please consider making a donation by contacting us at support@asianturtleprogram.org or visiting: https://asianturtleprogram.org/donate/

Press Release by: Pham Nhu Quynh & Timothy McCormack – ATP/IMC
20^th February 2020

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