MARCH 2012
Terrapins reintroduced to Aride
A terrapin takes to the water at the Aride marsh
Black mud terrapins have been reintroduced to Aride following an absence of more than a century. The reintroduction was part of the FFEM project ‘Rehabilitation of Island Ecosystems’ aimed at restoring the ecosystems of several islands including the granitic islands of Aride, Conception and North. This is an important achievement and a further step in the direction of restoring the ecosystem Aride. This is an important step as terrapins are becoming much rarer on Mahe and Praslin due to loss of habitat. It is an endemic subspecies and it is vital to create sanctuaries in protected areas for to try and compensate for the decline. Terrapins used to be present on Aride in the 19th century, but disappeared for reasons unknown. The new inhabitants of Aride will now be monitored and we hope that we shall soon have indications that they have adapted well and started to breed.
For more pictures of this transfer click here.
For more pictures of this transfer click here.
