Critically endangered turtle resurfaces after 30 years in major waterway: 'A new phase in the river's ... restoration'

After three decades without a single sighting, 20 critically endangered red-crowned roofed turtles have been reintroduced to India's Ganga River system, according to India Today NE. The release marks a significant milestone in efforts to restore the biodiversity of the Ganga River.

"This became the first reintroduction in India of the red-crowned roofed turtle," said Arunima Singh of the Indian Turtle Restoration Project, according to the Hindustan Times.

With shells capable of reaching nearly two feet in length and weighing upward of 50 pounds, red-crowned roofed turtles are indigenous to India, Bangladesh, and Nepal, according to the Wildlife Institute of India. Once widespread in the Ganga River, the turtles have been pushed to the verge of extinction due to habitat loss, human activity on the sandbars where the turtles nest, and poaching.

The reintroduction of the red-crowned roofed turtles is part of a larger, government-sponsored program aimed at cleaning up the Ganga River system and restoring its biodiversity, according to Devdiscourse. The animals have been outfitted with tracking devices that will allow scientists to monitor their reintroduction into the environment.

Prior to the release of the 20 turtles, a mature red-crowned roofed turtle had not been spotted in the Ganga River area in 30 years, according to India Today NE. The turtles were released at two separate sites, allowing scientists to study how the turtles adapt to different conditions.

Beyond restoring the population of a critically endangered species, scientists are optimistic that the return of the turtles "signals a new phase in the river's ecological restoration," India Today NE reported.

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Already, these rehabilitation efforts have produced results. In 2020 and 2022, scientists documented a "promising diversity" of turtle species in the river system, but no red-crowned roofed turtles, according to India Today NE.

The success of rehabilitation projects like that of the Ganga River system offers hope for areas around the world that have also experienced rampant habitat destruction and a drastic reduction in wildlife populations.

Restoring habitats lost due to human activity matters not only to the species that rely directly on those habitats for their survival. It also matters to human beings, who depend on complex ecological systems and biodiversity for everything from the food we eat to the materials we use to build our homes.

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