News
Cute terrapin import a major threat
Pix by Anuradha Bandara
About 15 terrapin hatchings the size of two-rupee coins lay in the aquarium’s glass box, some feebly moving from side to side while others were as still as death.
The container was divided into two: one side was deep, to hold water, and the other end was raised to represent land. The little terrapins lay in half-inch-high viscous muddy water.
The owner of the aquarium, at Diayatha Uyana near Parliament Junction, said the terrapins were imported from Malaysia and sold for Rs. 550 each. They grow only as long as a man’s palm and make excellent pets, he added.
The terrapin, very popular in the pet trade, is one of the most invasive creatures in the world, environmental experts say. The International Union for the Conservation of Nature terms it one of the 100 most invasive species in the world.
The semi-aquatic reptile, known as the red-eared slider (Trachemys scripta eleganis) or red-eared terrapin, is native to the southern United States and northern Mexico.
Civil biologist Suranjan Karunaratne said the species is sold throughout Sri Lanka, mainly from aquariums at Kirulapone, Ratmalana, Kalutara, Nugegoda and on the Diyawanna Road.
He said the red-eared sliders are now seen in rivers and ponds in coastal regions due to having escaped or carelessly released by owners.
Mr. Karunaratne said the terrapin is able to be sold legally in the country because foreign species of fauna are not covered in wildlife regulations and urged for a ban on the import of invasive species given the threat they pose to native species. This species of terrapin is carnivorous, he said, and would feed on fish, crabs, frogs and even baby crocodiles and native terrapins.
He claimed to have found the imported terrapin in wetland areas as the districts of Gampaha, Kandy and Colombo and said they are spreading towards dry areas along the coast such as Galle, Hambantota and into the Mahaweli river.
The Director of the Environment Conservation Trust, Sajeewa Chamikara, said the introduction of the new terrapin threatened the food chain of endemic fauna.
Sri Lanka has five species of native turtles, three of them living in the wet zone, and most of them are endangered, he said.
“The alien terrapin too prefers this habitat and competes for food and space its breeding is pushing the endemic turtles towards extinction,” Mr. Chamikara said.
Overseas reports say the red-eared slider could push native species into extinction in Europe and Asia.
Mr. Chamikara said if the foreign terrapins were set free into the waterways they could spread foreign diseases and decimate endemic reptiles.
He said pet owners should be careful not buy such exotic pets if they could not maintain them because they grow larger than the sellers claim – they grow to 12 inches or longer. He advised owners who wanted to get rid of terrapins to hand them over to responsible owners rather than setting them free.
Mr. Chamikara said the terrapins can live up to 80 years and multiply many times over in that time.
Environmental lawyer Jagath Gunawardena pointed out that rearing local animals was illegal according to the Wildlife Act, but not foreign species.
He said the imported terrapin is known to be an invasive species that adapts to many environments and that the government can stop the import of such creatures by deeming them to be invasive.
Retired Customs deputy director and founder of the Customs Biodiversity Protection Unit (BPU) Samantha Gunasekara said it was probable that invasive turtles and terrapins were coming into the country both legally and illegally.
He said aquarium owners smuggled in turtles in shipments of aquarium fish while terrapins were illegally brought into the country in luggage.