Tortoise Smugglers Caught With 10 Percent Of Entire Species At Thailand Airport

[Lite Beer]

Tortoise Smugglers Caught With 10 Percent Of Entire Species At Thailand Airport
The Huffington Post | By Ryan Grenoble

Two smugglers are facing charges in Thailand after authorities caught them attempting to sneak more than 10 percent of the remaining population of a critically endangered species into the country.

Among the contraband: 54 live ploughshare tortoises (also known as angonoka tortoises), of which there are an estimated 200 to 400 left in the wild.

“The criminals behind this shipment of Ploughshare Tortoises have effectively stolen over 10% of the estimated population in the wild," said Dr. Chris R. Shepherd, deputy director of wildlife trade monitoring group Traffic, per a statement released by the organization. “We urge authorities to go after the criminal masterminds behind these shipments and break the trade chains that threaten these incredibly rare animals."

Full Story: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/03/28/ploughshare-tortoise-smuggle-thailand_n_2972673.html?ncid=edlinkusaolp00000003

--Huffington Post 2013-03-29

[Locationthailand]

I would chain these people in a public place and flog them. Then I would tattoo 'criminal' on their foreheads for all to see and carry that shame for the rest of their days. Let people spit upon them. All animals have a right to life and have no way to defend themselves against the greed and superstitions of humans. I cannot express the anger enough.

[Payboy]

So which one is 10% --- 54 of 200 or 54 of 400?

[Penangfreak]

I would chain these people in a public place and flog them. Then I would tattoo 'criminal' on their foreheads for all to see and carry that shame for the rest of their days. Let people spit upon them. All animals have a right to life and have no way to defend themselves against the greed and superstitions of humans. I cannot express the anger enough.

+1

[Beetlejuice]

Anyone or gangs who threaten the existence or to wipe out an entire species should receive the death penalty.

These animals are all our legacy and for the generations to come. In fact these criminals are major players in the destruction of the wildlife on this planet. Once these unique species have gone, there can be no revivals back into nature and the whole world loses out.

[LuckyLew]

Only thing better than fin soup is turtle soup

[kblaze]

"All animals have a right to life"

Says who? (of course endangered species should be protected...but lets not get crazy)

[bigbamboo]

Well done to the authorities so far. Now they have to find out from these two individuals the names of the big noodles behind this disgraceful business are. Thailand does not need yet another embarrassing incident like this when it is already being closely watched by the WWF.

Somehow I have a feeling that if they are Thai sen yais the trail will quickly go cold.

[hgma]

tougher laws won't work in 'poverty' stricken countries.

remember folks, all the luxury bubbles are not for the 300 bath a day worker with a 47 bath regular petrol price per litre.

vast areas of Thailand are poor by lack of money, and will provide runners waiting in ques for ANYthing that brings them closer to fortune fame and white skin.

Tougher controle and inspections shift the runner brigade to neighboring Laos, myanmar and Cambodia.

sad but reality

[lemonjelly]

The irony is that usually it's destruction of the habitat that causes decline in species numbers and if these animals were being smuggled out to collecters they might have been used to breed thus ensuring the survival of the species.

[jonclark]

"All animals have a right to life"

Says who? (of course endangered species should be protected...but lets not get crazy)

Khun Tida and Jatuporn say so

[Hecate]

Good on the authorities for nabbing these guys. I hope they are so severely punished that wildlife smugglers become an endangered species.

[jamhar]

Regarding the math, Looks like HP journalist must be a product of TL's education system.

[how241]

Good on the authorities for nabbing these guys. I hope they are so severely punished that wildlife smugglers become an endangered species.

+1

[spud67]

Well done to the authorities so far. Now they have to find out from these two individuals the names of the big noodles behind this disgraceful business are. Thailand does not need yet another embarrassing incident like this when it is already being closely watched by the WWF.

Somehow I have a feeling that if they are Thai sen yais the trail will quickly go cold.

My limited observation is that the prospect of embarrassment is what may be effective in getting these types of law enforced and acted upon.

[Bluespunk]

So which one is 10% --- 54 of 200 or 54 of 400?

Mathematically speaking neither.

[Pimay1]

So which one is 10% --- 54 of 200 or 54 of 400?

Mathematically speaking neither.

I'm glad the guy who wrote this article is not doing my tax returns.

[maidu]

Well done to the authorities so far. Now they have to find out from these two individuals the names of the big noodles behind this disgraceful business are. Thailand does not need yet another embarrassing incident like this when it is already being closely watched by the WWF.

Somehow I have a feeling that if they are Thai sen yais the trail will quickly go cold.

Thai authorities are notorious for not using creative methods for smoking out the baddies in charge. There are ways they could find the original perpetrators or ring-leaders, and there are similar ways they could find those on the receiving end (most likely Chinese). Having said that, I commend the authorities who apprehended the mules. Will the surviving turtles be returned the wild?

The irony is that usually it's destruction of the habitat that causes decline in species numbers and if these animals were being smuggled out to collecters they might have been used to breed thus ensuring the survival of the species.

More likely they're being smuggled out to Chinese restaurants, where old men will savor their flesh, thinking it will make their yongs harder and last longer. Trying to breed tortoises in captivity is fraught with problems, and essentially impossible if they're beach breeding types, which these sound like they are. There is no punishment too harsh for such smugglers.

Incidentally, the Cantonese word for 'hard on' is the same name as 'tortoise head.' And primitive thinkers like that - think that the shape of an animals body part - indicates what it's good for when ingested. Similarly, westerners believed walnuts were good for the brain/mind because of how the nuts looked - but that was 300 years ago. Some people are just stuck in archaic thinking patterns. Similarly, superstitious and primitive thinking people believe that the fierceness of an animal indicates that ingesting its body parts impart that sort of fierceness, particularly to the eater's erection. That's why ingesting parts of tigers and bears and rhinos are so popular - among the Chinese. Top of the list: Tiger penis.

Edited March 29, 2013 by maidu

[ZhouZhou]

The irony is that usually it's destruction of the habitat that causes decline in species numbers and if these animals were being smuggled out to collecters they might have been used to breed thus ensuring the survival of the species.

spot on.

[Jonathanukthai]

this is a old story i have seen in on tv weeks ago.

[Locationthailand]

"All animals have a right to life"

Says who? (of course endangered species should be protected...but lets not get crazy)

I say - that's who - simple if you have the education to understand evolution and the food chain of Mother Nature and co-existence of species. Or perhaps you would rather enter a discussion on the Fibonacci numbers in nature on which you would certainly need an education as even you, are a complex mathematical equation if you care to look. But you can also take into account that humans are the only animal in the food chain that kills for no reason. So much for the higher species.

[Potosi]

It's not proven that the turtles were caught in the wild. There is a captive-breeding facility on Madagascar that lost 75 animals in 1996, later found in Amsterdam, and returned. I don't know why so much hate for animal smugglers is expressed here, as they did not create the problem of driving animal species to extinction. Would you care about them if they sat on top of the largest untapped oil field in the world?

[Nisa]

So which one is 10% --- 54 of 200 or 54 of 400?

Mathematically speaking neither.

I'm glad the guy who wrote this article is not doing my tax returns.

The criminals behind this shipment of Ploughshare Tortoises have effectively stolen over 10% of the estimated population in the wild," said Dr. Chris R. Shepherd

Would you be happy if the foreign writer and foreign doctor said 13.5% or then would the complaint be that it is a percentage based on an estimate anyway? Sounds to me what is being said is accurate unless somebody is not reading the article properly.

Edited March 29, 2013 by Nisa

[Nisa]

The Thai man attempting to collect the bags, O. Visarnkol, was arrested on site. Prior to his arrest he was already on bail for smuggling protected species.

Fortunately since the turtles were meant for the illegal pet trade and not consumption, they were still alive when confiscated.

Read more at http://news.mongabay.com/2013/0325-hance-ploughshare-trafficking.html#HRljeeYkwUvq7Gi8.99

[radiochaser]

"All animals have a right to life"

Says who? (of course endangered species should be protected...but lets not get crazy)

I say - that's who - simple if you have the education to understand evolution and the food chain of Mother Nature and co-existence of species. Or perhaps you would rather enter a discussion on the Fibonacci numbers in nature on which you would certainly need an education as even you, are a complex mathematical equation if you care to look. But you can also take into account that humans are the only animal in the food chain that kills for no reason. So much for the higher species.

I have watched cats and dogs kill other animals, then leave them where the dead animal lays. It appeared for no other reason than the enjoyment of the act of killing!!

[ZhouZhou]

The irony is that usually it's destruction of the habitat that causes decline in species numbers and if these animals were being smuggled out to collecters they might have been used to breed thus ensuring the survival of the species.

More likely they're being smuggled out to Chinese restaurants, where old men will savor their flesh, thinking it will make their yongs harder and last longer. Trying to breed tortoises in captivity is fraught with problems, and essentially impossible if they're beach breeding types, which these sound like they are. There is no punishment too harsh for such smugglers.

Incidentally, the Cantonese word for 'hard on' is the same name as 'tortoise head.' And primitive thinkers like that - think that the shape of an animals body part - indicates what it's good for when ingested. Similarly, westerners believed walnuts were good for the brain/mind because of how the nuts looked - but that was 300 years ago. Some people are just stuck in archaic thinking patterns. Similarly, superstitious and primitive thinking people believe that the fierceness of an animal indicates that ingesting its body parts impart that sort of fierceness, particularly to the eater's erection. That's why ingesting parts of tigers and bears and rhinos are so popular - among the Chinese. Top of the list: Tiger penis.

never heard greater nonsense being told. where did you get that from?

[wprime]

I would chain these people in a public place and flog them. Then I would tattoo 'criminal' on their foreheads for all to see and carry that shame for the rest of their days. Let people spit upon them. All animals have a right to life and have no way to defend themselves against the greed and superstitions of humans. I cannot express the anger enough.

Who said they're killing them? In all likeliness they'd be breeding them increasing the total population of the species.

[T_Dog]

I'm glad that they are catching more of these people. Hopefully that will slow demand somewhat.

[maidu]

It's not proven that the turtles were caught in the wild. There is a captive-breeding facility on Madagascar that lost 75 animals in 1996, later found in Amsterdam, and returned. I don't know why so much hate for animal smugglers is expressed here, as they did not create the problem of driving animal species to extinction. Would you care about them if they sat on top of the largest untapped oil field in the world?

Perhaps they didn't create the dire situation of near-extinction of that species, but they're certainly contributing to its demise.

The Thai man attempting to collect the bags, O. Visarnkol, was arrested on site. Prior to his arrest he was already on bail for smuggling protected species.

Fortunately since the turtles were meant for the illegal pet trade and not consumption, they were still alive when confiscated.

Read more at http://news.mongabay.com/2013/0325-hance-ploughshare-trafficking.html#HRljeeYkwUvq7Gi8.99

You're picturing the mules, whether they're thieves (stealing from a captive breeding site) or whether they're poachers (gathering endangered turtles from the wild) - as being caring and skilled enough to set up a breeding program? Or perhaps you're picturing the buyers (probably individual Chinese) as turtle breeders? First off, it's doubtful the thieves/poachers or the clandestine buyers have the skills or the means to breed such turtles - even zoos with professional staff have troubles breeding turtles. Your surmisation is more like something a defense lawyer might put forth, knowing full well that it's balderdash.

Edited March 30, 2013 by maidu

[maidu]

I would chain these people in a public place and flog them. Then I would tattoo 'criminal' on their foreheads for all to see and carry that shame for the rest of their days. Let people spit upon them. All animals have a right to life and have no way to defend themselves against the greed and superstitions of humans. I cannot express the anger enough.

Who said they're killing them? In all likeliness they'd be breeding them increasing the total population of the species.

Right, let's leave it to smugglers and poachers to safeguard the veracity of a tiny wild population of endangered species.