Freedom for 50 terrapins

Date: 21 September 2007
By: Chen Pelf Nyok
Source: The Star

SETIU: Fifty river terrapins were released into the Setiu River during the third annual Terrapin Independence Day ceremony.

The reptiles were raised between two and three years at a centre here.

The event was organised by the Turtle Research and Rehabilitation Group of Universiti Malaysia Terengganu (UMT) in conjunction with the nation’s 50 years of independence.

The opening ceremony of the Terrapin Independence Day, held at Sekolah Kebangsaan Mangkok, was witnessed by local villagers, schoolchildren and egg-collectors.

Hampers were given to the egg-collectors who sold the most number of terrapin eggs to the project.

Also present at the ceremony was Rozidan Md. Yasin, Director of the state Department of Wildlife and National Parks.

As a special commemoration of Malaysia’s 50th Merdeka celebration, a parade-cum-competition of fishermen’s boats decorated with the theme “Save Our River Terrapins” was also held.

Participants were provided with a Malaysian flag and were encouraged to use only natural resources to decorate their boats.

During the event Yayasan Maha Karuna, a foundation for the poor in Selangor, donated stationery sets for the students.

One of the egg-collectors Malek Yunus, 55, who has been collecting river terrapin eggs for the last three decades said there was a drastic decline in the number of terrapin nesting sites.

He praised the efforts of the Turtle Research and Rehabilitation Group of UMT in attempting to save the critically-endangered river terrapins.

Project leader, Prof Chan Eng Heng said that the Setiu River, apart from Terengganu and Dungun Rivers, was one of the remaining natural habitats for the river terrapin populations in the world.

“It is very important to conserve this species because the river terrapin is listed as one of the top 25 most critically-endangered turtles in the world,” she said.

The Terrapin Independence Day is held annually to release river terrapins that have been raised from hatchlings produced from eggs saved from human consumption.

The purpose of the project is to rehabilitate the depleted river terrapin population in the Setiu River.

The first and second Terrapin Independence Days held in 2005 and 2006 respectively, have released a total of 190 terrapins into the Setiu River. All the terrapins are equipped with microchips with unique identification numbers.

The microchips will allow individual identification of the terrapins.

The event is also held to create public awareness on the conservation needs of the river terrapins in the Setiu River.

An exhibition was also organised with activities such as drawing and colouring contests and games for schoolchildren.