SOUTHERN VIET NAM BOX TURTLE

This species was elevated to a full species status at the same time as the Bourret’s box turtle; both were previously considered as subspecies of the Indochinese box turtle, C. galbinifrons. The southern Viet Nam box turtle is a narrow-range endemic species known only from the eastern slopes of the Langbian Plateau in Khanh Hoa and Phu Yen provinces of southern Viet Nam. Within its range, only about 3,000km2 is thought to be occupied by this species, after considering known altitudinal range and the loss of habitat resulting from expanding agriculture.

This box turtle is another victim of the intense trade in turtles from Viet Nam to China, and as a result suffered an estimated 90% decline in population over the past few decades. The Red List assessment of 2018 estimated its population size to be no more than 3,000-10,000 at the best, but field surveys since 2010 had found only nine turtles of this species in the wild. Previously known only from the turtle trade and markets, it was first detected in the wild during a survey in 2010. That survey, carried out in 2010-11 and involving 15 days of field work by a team of four people and three trained dogs, only encountered eight turtles. Another survey in 2012 in one of the localities using a team of five dogs found only one southern Viet Nam box turtle in a week of searching.

Although the species was historically consumed as food in southern Viet Nam, the high price they garnered in the international “pet”, meat and medicine trade meant that any specimens collected since the 1990s were sold to local middlemen, who then exported or trafficked them internationally. Market surveys in China and Hong Kong from 1993 found this species being sold alongside the Bourret’s and Indochinese box turtles in their thousands as food and medicine, and more recently as pets. However, the prevalence of all these species in markets has dropped, probably reflecting their rarity in the wild. Hunted using specially trained dogs and pitfall traps, this species is collected both as mature individuals and as juveniles, with many locals attempting (and usually failing) to raise them for eventual sale for a higher price in the illegal trade. Additionally, large swathes of forest on the Langbian Plateau have been converted to agricultural land, primarily into coffee plantations, resulting in habitat loss.

All three species of box turtle that used to be considered C. galbinifrons – the Indochinese, Bourret’s and southern Viet Nam box turtles –are protected under Viet Nam’s laws. Although enforcement has improved in recent years, these species have been collected to the brink of extinction. Only one of the known sites occupied by this species has legal protection, and at best this only protects their habitat but not the turtles from poaching. Keeping and breeding C. picturata is quite difficult, with only about 500 individuals estimated to live in captivity. For this species to survive over the long term, additional sites in the Langbian Plateau must be protected and surveys conducted to identify where it may still exist in the wild, particularly in existing protected areas. Strong enforcement of laws protecting turtles and their habitat is also essential to their survival.