St. Louis Zoo team plays role in returning tortoises to the wild

By CNN Newsource

Published August 31, 2021 5:21 AM

By Stephanie Baumer

ST. LOUIS (KMOV) — A veterinary team from Saint Louis Zoo played a role in helping to return 1,000 tortoises to the wild!

Veterinarians and veterinary technicians worked alongside the Wildlife Conservation Society and the Turtle Survival Alliance to perform health evaluations used to determine which animals would be released in southern Madagascar. The tortoises were rescued from illegal trafficking.

“The ultimate goal of this effort is to allow confiscated individuals to return to the wild where they can reverse the population declines that put the radiated tortoise on the endangered species list. I am grateful to be a part of a community that contributes to the success of these radiated tortoises as they are released back into their wild homes for months and years to come,” said Saint Louis Zoo Institute for Conservation Medicine Research Fellow Maris Brenn-White.

Radiated Tortoises are considered critically endangered. The release is part of a pilot project that aims to create a long-term strategy for returning confiscated tortoises to their natural homes.

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