Discovering an extremely rare big-headed turtle in Quang Nam

Big-headed turtle, a rare and endangered animal, on the strictly protected list of Vietnam and the world, has just been discovered in Quang Nam province.

On the morning of April 10, while patrolling and protecting the forest, members of Forest Protection and Fire Protection Management Station No. 4 (located in Bac Tra My district, Quang Nam province) discovered a turtle stuck in a wire. forest in a stream in Tra Giang commune (Bac Tra My district).

Afterwards, forest protection staff rescued the turtle, checked its health status and released it into its natural growing environment.

The rare big-headed turtle was "rescued" by forest guards.

According to observations, this turtle weighs nearly 1kg and is about 20cm long. The tail is almost as long as the body, the head is covered with very hard horns that cannot retract into the shell, and the upper jaw forms a hook like a parrot's beak. This is the identifying characteristic of the big-headed turtle (Platysternon megacephalum).

This species lives in streams in the forest, where the water is clear and flows slowly at an altitude of over 600m above sea level in natural forests from the North to the Central and Central Highlands.

During the day, they often hide under rocks or bask in the sun on stream banks, and at night they look for food including invertebrates, mollusks or small crustaceans. When mature, big-headed turtles can reach a shell size of about 20cm.

This turtle species is listed as critically endangered in the world's red book due to over-exploitation and trade. If not stopped, this species will disappear in the near future. In Vietnam, big-headed turtles belong to group IB on the strictly protected list, and acts of abuse related to big-headed turtles will be severely punished.