Turtles: virtually immortal, nearly indestructable, and so cute!
The New York Times has a great article profiling everyone’s favorite reptile, the turtle.
It’s full of fascinating details and cute stories, like:
Dr. Gibbons told of a friend whose his pet box turtle would respond to the sound of a spoon being tapped on a glass ice cream bowl by emerging from behind the couch, walking over to its owner, rearing up on its hind legs and waiting to be spoon-fed its just dessert. “Had I not seen this a few times myself,” he said, “I would not have believed it.”
Unfortunately the article is also full of sad news about how human activities are killing turtles and threatening entire species. Grrr.
1 Comment
Noah
on #The problem: turtles are in danger because of all kinds of human exploitation. The solution? Continue exploiting them and other animals! “Conservationists said solutions could be found for many of the threats turtles face. Some propose that the market for turtle meat could be met through turtle farming, combined with stiff penalties for the hunting of wild turtles. The commercial fishing industry could reduce incidental turtle deaths significantly, conservationists said, by installing special trap doors.” — from the companion article, Though Sturdy Survivors, Turtles Prove to Be Ill Equipped for Human Threat