Invasion of good-luck turtles threatens legendary Hanoi species

Nov 23, 2010, 9:24 GMT

Hanoi(dpa) - Amid the horn-honking hustle of Vietnam's capital, Hoan Kiem Lake is an oasis of relative calm that attracts tourists and locals alike, the luckiest of whom catch a glimpse of the massive Ho Guom turtle that is its most famous resident.

Turtles are important in Vietnamese culture. But now foreign red-eared turtles are flourishing in the fabled lake, and environmentalists say they threaten the native species.

'I wonder who puts them in,' Andrea Kessner said Tuesday as she strolled around the lake, on holiday from Hamburg, Germany. 'Maybe they think they'll get a piece of good luck.'

That is precisely the problem, said Pham Dinh Quyen, general secretary of the Vietnam Association for Conservation of Nature and Environment. Despite efforts by authorities, many people release the turtles into the lake during the Tet New Year celebration and on the 15th day of the lunar month.

'Unfortunately, these turtles are adaptable and have been thriving in Vietnam, at the expense of local species,' Quyen told the Vietnam News Agency.

Red-eared turtles, indigenous to the United States, began to appear in Vietnam in 1997, according to Ha Dinh Duc, an expert on the species.

'It's hard to estimate precise numbers but they multiply very quickly and appear to be thriving,' he said.

The turtles aren't predatory, but compete with native species for food. They have also been spotted at other Hanoi lakes, and in ponds at the city's Temple of Literature.

The invaders are much smaller than the Ho Guom. Visitors to Hoan Kiem Lake often cross a footbridge to Ngoc Son Temple, where they are able to gawk at and photograph a model of the species based on measurements taken in 1968. It weighed 250 kilograms, and measured 2.1 metres by 1.2 metres wide.

Hoan Kiem translates as 'Lake of Sword Restored,' a reference to a 15th-century tale in which King Le 'returned a precious sword to the tortoise genius,' an exhibit at the temple explains.

Ho Guom are reclusive and rare, but at least one occasionally pokes its human-sized head above the green water.

It is said that it may be the lake's last survivor, a 300-kilogram behemoth that could be 300 years old.

Authorities are trying to protect Hoan Kiem, lake manager Nguyen Minh Tuan said. His staff has actively deterred individuals from releasing turtles and tries to educate the public about the harmful effects.

Environmentalists said authorities should ban imports of turtles.

Read more about Vietnam Ecology