A Step Forward for Tortoises in Madagascar
In another step forward for a critically endangered species, Turtle Survival Alliance released 1,000 Radiated Tortoises (Astrochelys radiata) on World Turtle Day®, May 23, 2024, into a community-protected forest in southwest Madagascar. These tortoises were seized from illegal trafficking and put under Turtle Survival Alliance management for rehabilitation, long-term care, and eventual release.
The first successful reintroduction of tortoises began in 2021, with thousands of tortoises released in batches since then. The tortoises will be monitored post-release to record movements, quantify survivorship, and qualify release efficacy. We aim to rewild more than 20,000 confiscated tortoises under our care in Madagascar over the next five years. To learn more about our plan, read our case for support.
In preparation for returning the tortoises to the wild, a veterinary team from Saint Louis Zoo WildCare Institute and Mississippi Aquarium working with husbandry staff from Zoo Knoxville, Wildlife Conservation Society, the Smithsonian Institute, and the Turtle Survival Alliance, and students from the veterinary school of the University of Antananarivo, performed health evaluations for tortoises large enough to be considered for release. The 1,000 cleared for release were placed in an isolation enclosure for six months prior to their transfer to the reintroduction site.
Concurrently, we, in close collaboration with Madagascar’s Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development (MEDD) and other government institutions, and the local community, invested considerable effort to prepare the site for tortoise release. The MEDD declared the site a community-managed area. TSA and the local community conducted surveys to establish boundaries and constructed expansive pre-release enclosures. TSA and its partners (gendarmes, MEDD) built capacity among community members to manage the site for tortoises and as a community forest.
The release is a day of celebration for the community, marking a collaboration between local communities, our organization, and the government to achieve a significant step towards the conservation of this endemic species in need.
Acknowledgments*:
Thank you to Aktionsgemeinschaft Artenschutz (AGA) e.V., Association of Zoos & Aquariums: Saving Animals From Extinction (AZA SAFE), Chuck and Ernestina Kreutzkamp Foundation, Cincinnati Zoo, Columbus Zoo, Dennler Family Fund, Fort Wayne Children’s Zoo, Gregory Family Charitable Fund, Jill Jollay, Milwaukee County Zoo, Mississippi Aquarium, Riverbanks Zoo & Garden, Smithsonian National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute, St. Louis Zoo, Toronto Zoo, United States Agency for International Development (USAID), United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), Zoo Atlanta, Zoo Knoxville, Zoofari Parks, LLC, and Will Ahrens, Brett Bartek, William and Kathleen Holmstrom, Lance Paden, Jamie Palmer, Bonnie L Raphael, Roy Young, and our many Alliance staff in Madagascar who work tirelessly to ensure that these tortoises have a future in the wild.
*Financial or in-kind support of $5,000 or more, from October 2022 to December 2023.
Header image: Turtle Survival Alliance Madagascar staff begin to unload the Radiated Tortoises prepped for release into tubs of water. After a good soak, they will be transferred into soft-release pens to begin the next step in their return to the wild. All photos courtesy of Turtle Survival Alliance Madagasikara, Communications Department.
